


What Still Remains

by Subl1m1nal



Series: Mimic Verse [2]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, MimicVerse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-22
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:53:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25381906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Subl1m1nal/pseuds/Subl1m1nal
Summary: Losing something doesn't necessarily mean the item is gone forever. It's merely missing.Why doesn't the same apply when losing someone?Maybe... they're just waiting to be found.
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Series: Mimic Verse [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1827214
Comments: 259
Kudos: 636





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome back.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PSA: THIS IS A SEQUEL!! IF U DIDN'T READ UNTIL ALL IS LOST,, GET OUT OF HERE!! ILY BUT UR NOT WELCOME YET <3

A funeral, by definition, is a ceremony for the dead. Tommy had been to a few when he was younger. One kid in his orphanage passed away after an attempt to run away; the monsters got to him before anyone could retrieve him. Tommy didn't know the kid very well, but his story had frightened Tommy into staying at that overcrowded prison for far too long. It was a good thing he ran into Techno when he had; the teen was his gateway to freedom, his protection. 

Now, however, he was meant to attend his funeral, the bravest man he knew, someone he looked up to for years, his brother. Tommy couldn't- no, refused to believe he was dead. He was gone, that was an undeniable truth, but Tommy is stubborn. When faced with a fact he disagrees with, he tries relentlessly to change fate. In other words, Techno's only temporarily gone, like a vacation. 

A knock at his door pulled him out of his thoughts and jerked him right back into his current, harsh reality. He looked at the door and watched as Philza and Wilbur walked in, not bothering to wait for Tommy's permission. They were both dressed in suits, Wilbur sporting a blue tie while Philza's was green. Their eyes moved from Tommy, who sat on his couch with his usual attire, to the suit they had brought him a couple of days ago, sitting untouched in its bag. 

"Tommy, you do remember today is the-," Philza began, shifting on the heels of his feet. 

Everyone seemed nervous around him, though he wasn't sure whether it was out of sympathy, or if they were avoiding another outburst. He only had four consistent visitors: Wilbur, Philza, and Dream and George. Sapnap didn't visit. Most of the others didn't visit him due to their own grieving or trying to give him some privacy. Sapnap's reasoning was different; Tommy was sure. Sapnap was avoiding him. 

"It's all your fault!" Tommy shouted as he glared at Sapnap with fiery eyes. Sapnap merely looked between where Tommy stood, then where the two Technos had vanished. Tommy didn't mean what he said. In fact, he was more frustrated with himself for not realizing Techno's stupid plan, yet he kept talking.

"You're such a dickhead! Techno's fucking dead, and it's your fault!" Sapnap's attention was now on him, and Tommy would never forget the somber look in his eyes. "I could have saved him," Tommy's voice cracked as he held his gaze, eyes pooling with tears. "Go fuck yourself, Sapnap. He saved me-," Tommy choked out, tears now streaming freely down his face, "I could have saved him if you'd hadn't- if you-. I could have helped." 

Tommy didn't remember much after his one-sided fight, just that Wilbur and Philza had to drag him home. Then he remembered Techno's request and found the letter in the notebook. That was five days ago. Tommy had reluctantly cut out the individual paragraphs of the note and gave them to the intended individuals. 

Mega, Spifey, and Zelk were the first to knock on his door. They seemed upset but hid it well with jokes and antics. It had distracted Tommy for a few moments, for which he was unadmittedly thankful. Upon their leaving, Spifey and Zelkam had ruffled his hair as they walked out, causing a small pit to form in his stomach. Mega, however, gave him a brief hug, which seemed to alarm the other two. 

Tommy could tell this wasn't a routine action for the mute based on how stiff the hug was, but he gave him a weak grin of appreciation anyway once he released him. Mega returned a small smile then turned back to his friends, who were jokingly complaining about their lack of hugs, and walked away.

The trio came by, mostly to check on Tommy, but also to thank him for delivering the note. They also helped take his mind off Techno somewhat, but their sadness wasn't well masked. A6D seemed to be the one most emotionally stable and kept making hard attempts to cheer the three up. Skeppy's smile seemed a little more forced, and Bad kept excusing himself. They didn't stay long. 

Dream and George, and Wilbur and Philza, visited daily, somedays even hourly. It was understandable why they were worried; after all, he had left his house once in five days. That was to deliver Techno's messages. 

"Tommy."

"Yeah, yeah. I know it's today," Tommy huffed as he looked over to the two. "I'm not going-."

"Tommy," Wilbur groaned, running a hand through his hair, "I'm so fucking tired of this. You have to accept the fact that Techno is gone to move on-. The whole village is going." Tommy merely looked away. Philza placed a hand on Wilbur's shoulder, who was obviously stressed and growing more agitated. Wilbur just sighed and nodded, a tired look replacing the anger in his eyes. 

"Tommy, please, this would mean a lot to Techno," Philza explained, watching Tommy's eyes soften. He thought for a moment he may have convinced him, but Tommy looked back at them with a determined gaze. 

"He's still alive. Why would I go to a funeral for someone who isn't even dead? It's stupid," Tommy explained, watching as the two shared a worried look. 

"Tommy." The pity was evident in Wilbur's voice, and Tommy laughed bitterly. 

"Of course you don't believe me. You never do, it's not like I was right about the last thing," Tommy pointed out, watching their faces morph into ones of understanding. 

"Tommy, I, well, we believe you. I swear we do," Wilbur said quickly, Philza nodding along beside him. "Whether that's because we can't believe Techno's gone ourselves, or a gut feeling, or faith in you, who knows," Wilbur explained, a small smile forming on his face. "Probably not the last, we have no faith in you." Philza laughed at the statement while Tommy scoffed, rolling his eyes in an attempt to hide amusement. 

"Tommy, the issue is, we don't know how to get him back. He's smart, though, he'll make it back." Philza sounded like he was trying to convince himself, but Tommy appreciated the attempt. Tommy grinned and tapped his head.

"We can do it too. Let's be the ones to save Techno this time! Prove to him that he's not the only smart one," Tommy assured, watching the two's worried looks shift into small smiles. 

"Alright, Tommy. We'll try, but let's go to his funeral first-."

"I'm not going."

"I paid so much for that suit. Make an appearance, brat," Wilbur huffed, grabbing the suit and shoving it into Tommy's hands. "And shower, you smell horrible." Philza laughed once more at Wilbur and nodded in agreement. 

"Make it quick," he added in, waving at the boy as he disappeared into his room. It was only when the shower started running that Philza turned to Wilbur. "Do you really think that Techno is," he trailed off. Wilbur's small smile faltered, but it returned just as quickly.

"I- Maybe it's a stupid way to cope. Maybe I do, or maybe I don't. All I know is that Techno wants us to believe in each other, and I'll be damned if I don't deliver on his last wishes."

.....

....

...

..

.

Techno peeled his eyes open, but the light immediately blinded him. He looked around in confusion as he slowly began recalling the events that had happened mere moments ago. He pushed himself up, rubbing his head as he looked around. It was isolated. Techno thought at least A6D or Mega would have stayed and waited for him, or maybe his friends would hear of his return and come to yell at him, but no. The woods were quiet. As he stretched, he felt a sharp pain in his side.

Upon looking, he found the cause of injury, the broken mirror, and the shattered glass shoving into his side. Luckily, his clothes blocked most of the edges. His face twisted into one of annoyance as he looked down at the object. His copy dumped his trash on him then retreated like a coward. He wouldn't survive a second in this world, especially now that Techno's back to his home. Instead of throwing away the entire mirror, however, he merely picked the loose pieces of glass out and tossed them aside.

The Mimic began towards his village after collecting the red cloak and the crown, which sat on the ground. Techno found it odd that his copy hadn't taken back his outfit and remained with the black, but he didn't care too much. After all, the red looked more kingly. 

Techno had finally returned to the town and spotted Skeppy, Bad, and A6D chatting a little further down the path. He didn't feel like being yelled at by Bad and Skeppy, so he quickly turned to walk away.

"Techno?" Darn, they noticed him. But for some reason, they sounded more confused than mad. Techno spun around, smiling as he waved. 

"Hey-."

"Where were you?" A6D asked, quickly hurrying forward to his side, the other two following after. Techno's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and he blinked hard.

"I was in the other world; I got forced through shortly after you two. You guys should've known this," Techno explained, watching Bad and A6D share a look. 

"Techno, you've been gone for a fucking month. I wouldn't say that's right after us," Bad huffed, adjusting his mask. Techno blinked once more, then again, and laughed slightly. 

"You're lying." Bad's face shifted to one of annoyance, and he shook his head. Techno's nervous smile faded into a frown. "That doesn't make sense. Death was a high possibility, but there was no reason for the portal to delay me for a month."

"You've got some explaining to do. The whole town has been looking for your ass," Skeppy added in, scowl deepening. "Everyone wants to know why you left."

"We tried to explain what happened while we were gone, but they want answers from you. Come on," A6D grabbed his wrist and pulled Techno along. The king contemplated running, but it would only get him into more trouble. Maybe he could negotiate because, in all honesty, he was way too tired to explain anything. Despite his verbal objections, however, he was begrudgingly dragged into the village, where Mega, Zelk, and Spifey resided. The three didn't seem to notice the approaching group, or perhaps they didn't care to look. It was only when Bad spoke, had they bothered to check.

"One of you go get Wilbur, Philza, and Tommy. I'm sure they've got some questions," Bad said, amusement clear in his voice as Techno shifted in A6D's grip. Philza was going to be angry, Wilbur was probably upset with him, and Tommy, well, he wasn't sure. 

Techno, who was too concerned with thinking up excuses to give his friends, didn't notice Mega until the mute had wrapped himself around him. He looked at the boy with a small, confused smile, before remembering he vanished for a month. "Where?" Mega asked in a whisper, releasing the king, who patted him on the head in acknowledgment. 

"I'm not sure what happened. It's hard to explain," Techno said with a grin, shrugging. He reached to his side and pulled out the mirror, showing the group. "You don't happen to know where my fake is, do you?" He looked at the shattered mirror with a dangerously wide grin. "I want to break him."

Techno didn't hear an answer; instead, another pair of arms wrapped tightly around him. Surprise replaced Techno's murderous expression, as the only two people who hug him are A6D and Mega, and they both stood in front of him. He looked down at the blond who clung to him tightly, frozen momentarily. He was quick to snap out of his surprise, however, and jumped at the opportunity to hug the teen. Tommy didn't say anything, but he didn't remove himself either, no matter how much those around the two stared.

Techno felt a sharp wack on the back of his head as Philza walked into view, glaring at the two. "Don't fucking disappear again," Philza grumbled, and though he looked furious, Techno could see relief flash in his eyes. 

"I won't, don't worry. It was an adventure I got too invested in, sorry," Techno hummed, running a hand through Tommy's hair, who seemed to have eased up on his grip. 

"Too invested is an understatement. Over two months, asshole. Did you like our copies better or something?" Wilbur asked, although it sounded like he was struggling to say the latter comment. Techno quickly shook his head. 

"No- that's not it. I liked the copies, but you guys are my family, I swear," Techno said, tensing up at the question. "I just liked their world better. It's less..." he trailed off.

"Bad," Tommy muttered from his shirt, almost making him jump due to the abruptness. Techno nodded nonetheless.

"I like the bad; it's fun messing with assholes," Skeppy pointed out, earning various noises of agreement. 

"I know, and it is," Techno assured, smiling. "But the peace was nice, and I wanted to experience a world that wasn't trying to kill me." Techno didn't dare tell them he felt as though he personally belonged more in the other world. He loved his friends, honest, and didn't lie when calling them family, but he enjoyed getting along with his friends instead of constant rivalry and bickering. 

"We missed you," Tommy's voice was barely audible, but he heard it. The boy never did like speaking in front of others. Once again, there were murmurs of agreement among the friends, while some looked more hesitant to admit it than others. Techno felt a smile break out on his face, and any prior worry had vanished. What was he worried about? They were still his friends, no matter what. 

"I missed you guys too," he hummed, releasing Tommy as he pulled away and took his usual spot behind Techno. He enjoyed staying behind the king as any attention towards the two was primarily on the taller. 

"Doesn't mean we aren't pissed. You took a month longer getting back than these three. You've got some explaining to do," Philza huffed, and Techno could feel his glare.

"When was the last time you guys saw my fake? Has he stolen anything from the village or my house?" He only received wordless no's from the crowd, but when he looked to Philza, he noticed his frown deepen. "Right right," he stretched, strolling past the group. "Can explanations wait for tomorrow? I'm tired, and besides, the Scream team isn't even here." Techno didn't wait for a reply as he continued down the path towards his home. He'd have a game plan tomorrow, for explanations, for finding his copy, for everything. 

He stopped when he got to his door, spinning around at the faint sound of shuffling. Tommy stood there, staring at him blankly while he stared back. "I didn't notice you tagged along. What's up? Want another hug?" Techno teased, but his grin fell when he noticed Tommy seemed to be debating the idea. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Tommy answered all too quickly, turning to leave. Techno didn't let him; he grabbed his wrist and pulled the boy inside. It was just how Techno left it. Closing the door behind him, he sat Tommy on his couch, then himself.

"Comfy?" Techno asked as he pulled off his boots and cape, tossing the clothing aside. 

"Yeah, but nothings up-." Techno's gaze shut him up quickly. He sighed in defeat, leaning into the cushions and fiddling with the jacket tied around his waist. "You left."

"Yeah," Techno hummed, directing his attention to the photos of his friends framing his cracked walls. "I invited you to come with me."

"I didn't want to come; I like our world. I like our friends." Techno looked back to Tommy who's head remained lowered, and his hands fidgeted more. 

"Tommy, it's not that I don't like our friends-."

"You don't like me." Techno froze, confused as to if he heard the teen right. Tommy seemed to regret what he said and looked to be trying to think of some ways to backtrack. His head snapped towards Techno, however, at his laughter.

"No, that's not it. I have no clue where you got that idea, Tommy. I love you, despite you annoying me with your tendency to steal or fight with others. You're never a reason I left," Techno assured with a bright smile, and Tommy's worried expression seemed to fade.

"You don't like the other Tommy more?" Techno tapped his chin at the question, his tired eyes gleaming as he looked over to the boy. 

"Tommy, I don't dislike either of you. You're family, no matter what world," Techno assured. Tommy's face flickered to one of surprise, confusing Techno. "What?"

"You sounded like your-, uh, someone else," Tommy explained, shrugging. "So why did you leave?" He quickly changed the subject, not wanting Techno to focus on the fact that he had almost compared him to his copy. 

"As I said, the world was intriguing. It was peaceful, and you didn't have to fight for survival against both the mobs and the people. And there were some different traits our friends copy's have that I liked. Bad was nice and helpful, Wilbur was happier, Skeppy was friendly." Techno trailed off, knowing the explanations weren't enough. "Besides, you know I get hyper fixated on stuff. Finding the book had sparked my interest in ruling my copy's village too."

Tommy smiled and rolled his eyes, repositioning himself as he relaxed more. "Yeah, you're kind of a strange man, Technoblade." Techno huffed and shrugged. 

"I'd call myself more unique than strange," Techno pointed out, collapsing on top of Tommy, who groaned in protest. 

"Get off," Tommy said, shoving the king, who didn't move. Tommy gave up after five minutes, noticing Techno's deep blue eyes shut and soft, shallow breathing coming from him. 

"Good night."

..

.

Techno opened his eyes, looking around in confusion. He was in his house, but that didn't make sense. Last he remembered he was-. He heard small puffs of air and quickly searched for the source. 

"Tommy?" he asked, quickly pushing himself up as the Mimic shot awake. Tommy rubbed his eyes tiredly and glanced at Techno in confusion.

"What's wrong?" Tommy asked, pushing himself up and looking around in alarm. Techno looked around as well, once again taking in his surroundings. 

"What am I doing here?" Tommy's head snapped back to Techno. 

"What? It's your house. Remember yesterday? Bad, Skeppy, and A6D found you-."

"No, yesterday I broke the mirror and sent me and my Mimic through the portal back to his world," Techno explained, patting his clothes down and grabbing at the broken mirror, showing it to Tommy. "See?"

Tommy looked just as confused as Techno, and he grabbed the male's arm and pulled him to the seat. "Ok. Maybe it was a dream?"

"No, it wasn't a dream, Tommy. I know reality from fiction," Techno huffed. He ran a hand through his hair and looked in the shattered mirror. He dropped it with a clatter. "I have blue eyes."

"Yes. You always have," Tommy pointed out, his tone matter-of-fact. Techno looked at Tommy with a dead gaze.

"No, Tommy. My eyes are brown." Tommy blinked in realization as panic washed over his face. 

"You're Techno."

"Yeah, I know that," Techno said as he ran a hand through his hair, picking up his mirror once more. 

"No, like-," Tommy stopped, watching Techno look in the mirror again with a nervous gaze. "You're Techno and Techno."

Techno glanced over to Tommy with a frown. "You're horrible at explaining things." Tommy groaned and rolled his eyes, then held up two fingers. 

"This is my Techno," he held up his right pointer finger. "This is you," Tommy held up his left pointer. He then drew the two fingers closer together until they overlapped. "You're Techno and Techno."

Techno blinked and shook his head. "That doesn't make sense," Techno muttered. 

"That was a brilliant explanation."

"I understand the explanation," Techno muttered, his head in his hands. "It's just, how?"

"Well, you were in the portal for a month," Tommy muttered, jumping as Techno's head shot up.

"What?" Techno asked, looking at Tommy. "A month?" Tommy nodded, scratching his head in thought. The two were sitting in silence for a few moments, sunlight flooding into the room as the sun rose. "We didn't know what going in the portal at the same time would do; death was a possibility-."

"What-."

"-anything was a possibility. The portal combined the Mimic and I. Bad and good formed into one-."

"Why?" Tommy interrupted, but this time Techno acknowledged his question. 

"I don't know," Techno admitted, and once again, silence filled the room.

"Maybe it's, like, positive and negative?" Tommy offered; Techno looked over to the boy with furrowed brows. "Ok, say Techno is a negative one. You're a positive one, and going through the portal is like the equation. A positive or negative one can make it through alone, but when they go together, they combine and cancel out."

Techno blinked at his explanation, nodding. "You're saying we combined and canceled out the natural good and bad. I had no clue you had a brain," Techno muttered, concealing a grin at Tommy's offended shout. 

Techno looked back into the shattered glass, Tommy following his gaze. "You know, you do have darker blue eyes than my Techno had."

"And my cloak's now a deeper red," Techno muttered, looking at the discarded mantle. "So," he muttered, blinking at the foreign yet familiar eyes that stared back at him. "I'm Techno and Techno."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!! Im sorry if this lowkey sucked, maybe it did, maybe it didn't. WHo knows? anyways, the sequel is only going to be 4-5 chapters long :)) but I swear I'll try my best on each chapter <3 
> 
> Tysm for reading and Im sorry it took so long, I have two friends moving this week and I've been kinda busy,,
> 
> and kinda lazy,,,
> 
> anyways, I love you all so much, stay safe, and have a wonderful Morning/Afternoon/Evening/Night ! :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Techno struggles.

Techno never claimed to be an actor. In fact, Techno was inept with most art-oriented skills, aside from the art of war. He could win a fight effortlessly, ask him to pretend to be someone he's not, however, and the result is horrendous. Yet, despite expressing this fact to Tommy, the boy refused to listen. 

"Smile," Tommy ordered, and Techno rolled his eyes and gave the boy the same awkward smile he had been giving him for the past three hours. Tommy gave Techno a displeased look then tapped his chin. "You two are literally copies, how is your smile so forced and awkward compared to Techno's?"

"Because it is a forced smile, and this is awkward," Techno pointed out, resting his chin on his hand from where he sat at his table. "This isn't going to work."

"Yeah, I know that." Tommy paced back and forth in front of Techno, the king's eyes following the Mimic. "Do you have a better idea?"

"We can just tell them-."

"No," Tommy quickly objected, stopping where he stood and looking at Techno. "The last interaction they had with you, you fought and knocked them out."

"And?" Techno asked, his blank gaze returning Tommy's puzzled stare. Tommy huffed. 

"You can't say 'and' like you don't think there would be any consequences," Tommy said, shaking his head with a small, poorly concealed grin. "They'll either hate you, try to kill you, or won't give a shit."

"Hey, language," Techno scolded, although he didn't seem to care. "I'll fight them off. Besides, they'll have to deal with me like this until I can get back to normal anyway." 

"Yeah, but you're gonna have Skeppy and George ready to fight, and Sapnap's still angry about having to get another weapon, oh- and Dream was pissed," Tommy muttered, tapping his chin as he explained. "He's probably fine now, though. I didn't even know he could fight," Tommy admitted, watching Techno frown. 

"I don't know who's worse to fight between my Dream and your Dream. Your Dream is more impulsive when fighting, while mine is very strategic. However, they're both quick and clever, and yours is more," Techno paused, trying to find the right word, "feral."

"Feral?" Tommy asked with a confused look, and Techno nodded with a deeper frown. 

"He bit me," Techno explained, pulling up his sleeve but finding the injuries gone. He shrugged it off and looked away, "a lot." Tommy snickered at the confession but nodded. 

"Didn't know the Technoblade was frightened of an unconfident twig," Tommy joked, ignoring Techno's scoff. Before the king could confirm or deny, however, Tommy changed subjects. "How do you plan on getting home and your body back?"

"Home?" Techno asked, confusion flooding his face as he looked around the room. "What do you mean? I am at home." Tommy frowned with furrowed brows and looked around as well. 

"Yeah, I guess you technically are, but your actual home," Tommy said, confused on whether Techno was joking or not. The lost look on the king's face confirmed that Techno was not. "To your world, Techno." Tommy laughed as realization flooded Techno's face. "Did you seriously forget?"

"No," Techno said flatly, shrugging. "I wouldn't forget something that important," Techno assured, but a pit sat in his stomach. He shouldn't have forgotten something that important. Why'd he forget that?

"Techno." Tommy waved a hand in front of his face. "You there?"

"Yeah, I'm just tired," Techno explained, staring at Tommy with a small smile in an attempt to reassure the worried boy. Tommy pointed at his face and nodded.

"You really need to work on your smile," Tommy joked, returning his hand to his side and collapsing in the seat across from Techno. "I think I'd be able to convince Philza and Wilbur not to fight you, but they'll probably be pissed at me. Mega will only fight if told or provoked, same with A6D. I think I can persuade Sapnap too, and he can convince George." Tommy seemed to be more muttering to himself than to Techno. Techno shook his head with a sigh. 

"Tommy, if helping me is going to make enemies for you, don't do it," Techno said, watching Tommy look at him with a frown. 

"Techno, I'll be fine. I'm hard to hate, I'm the town's baby," Tommy said, using his fingers to put quotation marks around the baby. "They may not always realize I'm there, but I-." Tommy stopped, opening and closing his mouth as he tried to form the right words. "They aren't going to hate me for protecting a friend because they'd do it too." Tommy seemed uncertain in his words and looked to Techno for some form of reassurance or confirmation. 

"Yeah, you're hard to hate, Tommy. If my world's Tommy can still be liked after all of the shit he pulls, I'm sure you're a saint."

"Oh absolutely not, I stole so much stuff from Sapnap two days ago," Tommy hummed, a small grin painting his face. "What does your Tommy do to have such a bad reputation?" 

Techno went to answer with a specific example, but once again found his brain unable to form a cohesive memory. "He, uh, he has a bad habit of getting into conflicts. Mostly because he hates admitting he's wrong or saying sorry."

"Couldn't be me," Tommy admitted, pushing himself up and searching through a chest for a bottle of water. "I-." He was cut off by a knock at the door. 

Techno looked at the door with a blank expression, not allowing his worry to show through as Tommy stood up. "It's either Mega, Zelk, Spifey, Dream, or Sapnap. Maybe Bad or George, the others wouldn't knock." Tommy muttered, walking to the door. He looked back at Techno with a nervous glance. "Time for you to put my teachings to use-."

"You didn't teach me anything!-" Tommy opened the door, and Techno quieted, trying to glance out the door from where Tommy stood. 

"Oh, hey Dream," Tommy greeted, a nervous laugh following. "What brings you here? Are Sapnap and George with you?" he asked.

"No, they sent me alone," Dream replied, looking over Tommy's shoulder and into the home. "Where's Techno?" Tommy looked back at Techno and giving him a discrete, forced smile. 

"Come on in," Tommy offered, holding the door open for Dream. Techno gave Dream the best smile he could muster as he walked in, which Tommy seemed to approve of and nodded enthusiastically behind Dream. 

Dream, however, did not approve of his smile. Techno barely had time to react as the boy lunged at him, quickly moving to the side. Dream didn't seem affected by the maneuver, and in a blink, the green had disappeared from his vision. Techno spun around, spotting Dream in his peripheral a second too late. 

"No!" Tommy shouted, quickly putting himself in between the two, worry shining in his eyes. Dream managed to stop himself right before colliding with the blond, giving him a confused stare.

"That's not Techno, Tommy. Get out of the way," Dream huffed, circling the two like a predator hunting its prey, but Tommy followed his movements, not daring to back down. 

"I know," Tommy replied, tense as he stood his ground. "Well, I mean, technically it is." Dream frowned at this comment, his mouth twitching as he tried to decode what Tommy had just told him. 

"No, it's not. Techno's eyes are a lighter shade of blue, and his smile had way too much effort behind it. Back down, Tommy. You're fighting for an imposter," Dream explained, his hands digging through his pocket. 

"You noticed that in two seconds, dude, chill," Techno huffed, reaching to move Tommy out of the way as he didn't want the boy to get hurt in the fight. Dream didn't seem to like the gesture, however, and as a green orb collided with his chest, Techno was on the ground. Tommy tried to pull Dream off, but he didn't budge. 

"Wait! It is Techno, I swear," Tommy said, struggling to hold onto Dream. Techno struggled to see the difference between Dream and his Mimic when it came to battle. "Let me explain, please," Tommy begged. "Please, Dream."

Dream didn't remove his gaze from Techno once, but he stopped attempting to attack the king as Tommy grabbed tightly to his sweater. "Ten seconds."

"Techno and his Mimic were combined when they went through the portal. Positive, negatives, they canceled out since they went through at the same time," Tommy explained in one breath, gasping in air at the end. Dream took his gaze away from Techno, who was holding himself back from shoving the male off, momentarily to look at Tommy with pursed lips.

"That-," Dream closed his mouth and looked back to the male beneath him, who stared back at the black mask. "Oh," Dream finally muttered after a few moments of tense silence, "I get it."

"How," Techno asked, wary as the male slowly got off of him. "I already knew what happened, and I still didn't understand a word that Tommy said."

"I don't trust you, or believe you," Dream replied, although it didn't answer Techno's questions at all. "But I do trust Tommy." Techno laughed at the statement, but the two just stared at him in unspoken confusion. 

"What?" Tommy asked, holding out a hand and helping Techno up. "Why is that funny?"

"I never thought I'd hear that phrase before," Techno said with a lazy grin, readjusting the crown on his head. 

"What, why not?" Tommy asked, an offensive tone lacing his words. Techno shrugged, frowning when he couldn't come up with a plausible reason why.

"I," he paused, trying to come up with something, anything. "I don't know." Tommy gave him a concerned stare, while Dream watched him with a blank expression. "Anyway, Dream. I think you need more of an explanation. Both I and my Mimic went through the portal at the same time. Because of this and the nature of the two worlds, good and bad, the portal combined us to create balance."

Dream nodded warily, looking to Tommy, who offered him a small thumbs up. "Ok, so where's Techno?" Techno tapped his head; a tired look flashed across his face. 

"Probably having a better time than I am," Techno complained, walking over to the table and sitting in his seat, resting his head in his hands. "The man gets a day of rest while I get to clean up his mess and get myself out. This feels rigged." Tommy ignored Techno's whining and looked back to Dream, who had returned to his natural state of docility. 

"So, what brought you here in the first place?" Tommy asked, gaining the masked boy's attention once more. Dream wordlessly mouthed an 'oh' in realization before pointing towards the door.

"Everyone's waiting for you two in town." Techno's head shot up in alarm, looking at Dream, then to Tommy, who seemed to be thinking about something.

"Ok, Techno. Ready to act?" Tommy asked, and Techno immediately began protesting the idea. 

"Tommy, Dream didn't fall for it. I'm not going to be able to fool ten others if I can't even fool one person. How about we just tell them I'm sick?" Tommy shook his head, grabbing Techno's arm and pulling him out of his seat.

"Won't work, they're stubborn and honestly don't care," Tommy explained, walking to Dream, who stood at the door, with Techno. "Dream, will you help us out? Skeppy, Bad, and George will-."

"George will be mad if I go against him," Dream quickly blurted, nervously fiddling with his sleeves. Tommy's lip twitched, and he nodded. 

"I know." The three walked outside of the house, Tommy quickly shutting the door behind him. The trio was silent for a few minutes as they walked toward town, then Tommy sighed. "Ok, just- here's the plan. I'm going to be a bodyguard, like how I was when Dream attacked."

"Tommy, no," Techno quickly said, Dream looked as though he wanted to protest as well. "I don't want you to get hurt." Techno didn't have the heart to remind Tommy that Dream still managed to tackle him earlier. Tommy made a noise of disagreement and went to speak again, but a clearing of a throat cut the boy off. 

"Why would he need a bodyguard?" Wilbur asked, and the two directed their attention back to the path in front of them. Oh, the walk to town was quicker than Techno remembered.

"Oh, you know," Tommy began, shifting on his feet as he tried to improvise. "Just in case."

"You three took a while," Sapnap pointed out from where he sat on the steps to a jail-like building that Techno quickly identified as the place he was first trapped. "Is something wrong?"

"Hm, not really," Tommy answered before the other two could, sparing Dream a glance. Dream looked to the boy and nodded in confirmation. 

"Dream," Sapnap hummed, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. "Is something wrong?" Dream looked over to Sapnap and let out a small huff. 

"No, we were just talking," Dream admitted. George grinned from where he sat near Sapnap, pushing himself up and walking over to the three. 

"You're a horrible liar," George hummed to Dream, who quickly ducked his head, then turned to Techno. "Something's off; I just don't know what." Techno stared down at George, masking his worry with a blank face.

"Nothing's up," he shrugged, but in a mere second, the tip of an ax was pressed threateningly against his chest. He didn't waver and ignored the stares he got from the rest of the group. They were waiting for a reaction, but Techno refused to give them one. What would his Mimic say? Something stupid and cocky, but sickeningly sweet sounding. "Do you really want to try that, George?" 

George's confident grin wavered, and Techno's glance at Tommy told him he did something right. George 'tsked' but didn't move his ax. "If nothing's wrong, you wouldn't mind answering a question. What did we do for my birthday last year?"

"We raided a village, and you stole the ax you're threatening me with right now," Techno answered without hesitation. George's grin fell, as did his ax, and he backed up. 

"Huh, guess you're still Techno, so then what's up?" George asked, looking to Dream and Tommy for an answer. The two didn't return his gaze and instead stared at Techno. 

"How-," Tommy began, and Techno held a hand against his head. 

"I don't know," Techno answered quickly. There was a constant pounding in his head that sent waves of pain through his body. "I don't know."

"Are you ok?" Zelkam asked quietly from where he watched the scene. 

"Techno-." There were so many questions, so many people surrounding him as he sunk to his knees, his head pounding. The male could no longer hear the voices of the concerned group around him. Instead, one voice spoke louder to him above all others. 

"I told you." Techno spun around, searching for the source of the voice, but finding nothing. "God, how are you a copy of me, you're so stupid. I'm not physically there. I'm in your mind." 

Techno rolled his eyes at the Mimic's comment, despite the pain caused by doing so, and let go of his head. He suddenly became distinctly aware of the eyes on him and of the sudden silence. "Say I'm alright, sorry for worrying you." Techno did as instructed, but this didn't seem to ease the crowd's suspicion or worry whatsoever.

"Techno, what's going on?" Philza asked, walking forward and putting himself between George and Techno. Wilbur followed suit, and George took a few steps back. 

"Tell them the truth," the disembodied copy ordered, and Techno huffed in annoyance.

"Are you kidding me?" Techno muttered, ignoring the eyes on him. "Tommy said that was a bad idea."

"Techno," Philza snapped, gaining the king's attention. Techno sighed in defeat, and before he could be interrupted by his copy, he answered.

"I am not your Techno-," a knife was thrown at his head, but Wilbur caught it before it could make contact. Not that Techno wasn't already prepared to side-step the attack. Wilbur spun around and threw it back at Skeppy, a glare directed at the shorter male. 

"Let him speak," Wilbur hissed, and Techno heard a cocky 'told you' in the back of his mind. 

"He just said he wasn't our Techno!" Skeppy shouted back, grabbing the blade out of the wood beside him. Techno was now distinctly aware of the number of people with their weapons at the ready.

"Me and your Techno combined bodies when we went through the portal at the same time," Techno explained, sighing as his headache lessened. "And now, I'm schizophrenic."

"What?" Tommy asked, looking at him curiously. "That's news."

"You're horrible at talking, three steps back then jump left. Now." Techno followed his Mimic's instructions with a scoff, narrowly avoiding an ender pearl and an ax to his face. 

"I already knew that," Techno stated, "Why are you helping me? I thought you hated me."

"I'm not going to let you destroy my body, and I already know their attacks. Skeppy's going to attack from the left." Techno nodded and jumped out of the way of Skeppy's charge, glancing over to Wilbur and Philza, who seemed to be trying to disarm George. 

"It's my body," Techno argued back, pulling out his sword and clashing against the pair of knives aimed at him. He heard a scoff but ignored it as he ducked and rolled to the side. "How do I get him to chill?"

"You either let him win-."

"Hmm, no," Techno answered stubbornly.

"Or win yourself." Techno hummed at that option and resheathed his sword. He ducked under Skeppy's next swing and grabbed his wrist, twisting it until he dropped his knife. Techno caught it before it could land, and jumped out of the way as the other swung down near him. He kicked the weapon out of Skeppy's hand, and in a mere second, a knife pressed against Skeppy's throat. 

"Alright," Techno announced in a loud voice, gaining everyone's attention and freezing the scene. Philza was in the middle of pulling George off of Wilbur, who had Tommy trying to pull him back. Mega, Zelk, Spifey, A6D, and Bad all sat to the side, watching in mild amusement. Sapnap had his staff out and looked like he was about to hit Philza with it, and Dream gave uncertain glances around the group, wondering what to do with George's ax in hand. "How about we all calm down?"

Skeppy huffed, glaring at Techno as if a knife wasn't threatening his life. The group hesitantly pulled apart, the fighting ceasing as they took a few steps away from each other. 

"Listen, I don't care to be here. In fact, all of my past actions towards you aren't even my fault. I was just trying to get my friends and me out of the mess my Mimic caused, and now I have to do it again," Techno explained, glancing at Skeppy, who held his glare. 

"You were the idiot who couldn't accept defeat and sent us through the portal at the same time. This isn't my mess-."

"Yes, it fucking is," Techno growled under his breath, gripping the knife tighter. "So, we have two options. You can work with me so I can free not only me, but your Techno, or you can work against me, and I won't hesitate to take you out." No one moved, no one spoke. The air was almost suffocating around Techno. Techno kept Skeppy's glare, staring back with tired, harsh eyes.

Finally, Skeppy looked away with a grunt, putting his hands up in defeat. Techno felt a hand on his shoulder and looked over to see Tommy looking at him with soft eyes. "We're all with you, so let's get you home." Techno nodded, dropping the knife and sighing. 

That was two days ago. Now the group sat around a table in the large building in the middle of town. Techno discovered that the building was more of a multipurpose building than a prison. Instead of having their meetings held in the Scream Team house, they held them here. 

"Techno!" Techno blinked, looking to Sapnap, who was sitting across from him. "You zoned out again." Over the past couple of days, both he and his Mimic had been distracted. They switched out every day, Techno discovered, and yesterday was his Mimic's turn. 

Being trapped in his own mind was odd. He could see everything the Mimic was doing, but he couldn't move. Techno could even focus on other things and zone back in when necessary.

It began as simple momentary distractions, especially with others around to pull them back in reality. However, without others around, and as the day went on, Techno would zone out for longer periods. At one point yesterday, his Mimic had blinked, and when he looked out the window, the sun had gone down. 

Not only this, but the two had been experiencing memory issues. Some were more severe than others, such as when Techno forgot Mega's name earlier today, or when his Mimic had gotten lost yesterday because he had forgotten the way to his own town. Because of these issues, the planning process took longer than necessary, but Techno believed he finally had a plan. 

Techno blinked back into reality once more, but this time he found he was soaked. He looked at his clothes in confusion, then to Zelk and Spifey, who stood behind him with two empty buckets. 

"Techno, are you good? Zelk and Spifey had enough time to fill two buckets with water, all while we were shouting your name," A6D asked, and Techno merely nodded.

"Yeah, just tired." No one believed him. "Let's just get to the plan," he muttered, brushing some of his wet hair out of his face. He ignored the stares and rubbed his eyes, leaning against the table. "To get me back to my world, we need to fix the mirror. There's only one mirror per world, and since it's a key, it probably can't be fixed-."

"So, what do we do then?" A6D asked, and a chorus of questions erupted in the room.

"Let me finish, jeez," Techno huffed, silencing the room. "It can't be fixed the way mirrors can. It has to be made up of its own components. As you can see, we're missing some glass," Techno pulled the mirror out and showed the group.

"Don't you dare say we have to go look for those pieces," Bad groaned. Techno hummed, shrugging. 

"I could be horrible and make you do that, or we can use magic," Techno offered, and again the room was silent. "Ever heard of mending? We need to find that enchanting book, or maybe we can buy one or have someone who already knows the enchantment put it on."

"No one is going to help you with that," the voice in the back of his mind pointed out. "We're well known and very disliked."

"Wow, you mess things up even when you're stuck in my head," Techno thought back, ignoring the Mimic as he focused in on the chatter among his new... acquaintances? 

"Is it too late to pick up the glass?" Wilbur asked with a sigh, sinking back in his chair.

"Aw, come on, Wilbur! Cheer up! It's like an adventure. Think of all the loot," A6D said with a grin. Techno frowned, ready to object to the idea of stealing, but he got cut off.

"Listen, this world isn't as buddy-buddy as yours. Everyone steals, everyone sucks. Let them be excited," his copy pointed out, and Techno reluctantly shut his mouth. 

"I- Techno leaves tomorrow at noon. You don't have to come." Techno pushed himself up, and the others watched as he walked to the door. "Goodnight. See you in a day." He received a few 'goodbyes' before the door closed behind him. 

In the morning, Techno awoke to a repetitive knock at the door. A pit of worry settled in his stomach as he grabbed the nearest weapon he could find, his sword, before looking around confused. He made his way to the door and swung it open, pointing the sword at the blond teen. The boy looked at Techno with a shocked expression, holding his hands up in surrender when Techno didn't lower his sword.

"Techno?-."

"No! Don't attack!" two identical voices shouted at the same time, and Techno looked around in confusion.

"What's going on? Techno, what are you doing?" one of the voices asked, sounding nervous.

"I'm not the one in control today, Mimic. What-."

"What's going on?" Techno whispered, his grip tight on his sword as he searched for the location of the voices. There was none. 

"Techno, put down the sword, please," the blond in front of him requested. Techno blinked as he focused back on the frightened teen.

"Do I listen to him?" Techno thought to himself, not moving as he stared into blue eyes. 

"Yes, put down the sword," a bored voice replied, though the worry was overwhelmingly obvious. 

"Where are you? How can you hear me?" Techno asked, eyes darting around. He did, however, lower his sword. For some reason, he felt safe with the boy.

"We're inside your mind," the brighter voice answered, and Techno nodded. That made sense. Techno looked back to the blond. 

"Who's that?"

"Tommy," the bored voice answered, sounding slightly less concerned. 

"Techno, what's wrong?" Tommy asked, reaching out slowly and grabbing Techno by the arm. 

"I'm Techno?" He earned a hum of approval from both the voices and Tommy. 

"Oh," the bored one muttered, "I think I get it. Tell the boy, Tommy, that there was one more thing the portal did."

"The voices in my head want me to tell you that there was one more thing the portal did."

"Huh-?"

"Tell him positives and negative combined to make zero. Tell him that you're the zero."

"Okay? The dull voice says that negatives and positives combined to make zero. You're the zero."

"No, say I'm the zero."

"I'm the zero," Techno repeated, watching realization flood over Tommy's face.

"Shit."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK THIS SEEMED REALLY RUSHED AND IM SORRY,,
> 
> it's not my favorite chapter because of it, but I wanted to give you guys something bc I was taking way too long. I don't really know how I could slow this chapter a little more either, because character building comes in a later chapter, and I don't want to give you guys a super long sequel that's just full of filler and fluff bc that's lame.
> 
> Anyways, now the final techno is introduced, so we can get to the good stuff :))))
> 
> Tysm for reading, and Im sorry if this chapter kinda sucked, I'll try to make the future three better :) 
> 
> I hope you all have a great morning/afternoon/evening/night, stay safe, I love you all <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy will get Techno back.

Sapnap was definitely avoiding him. Any possibility, any doubt in his mind that offered alternative reasoning for his absence was gone. A week ago, at the funeral, he hadn't even looked at Tommy. That was the day he made it his goal to get Sapnap to look at him. 

Turns out, gaining his attention wasn't hard, and a week later, he achieved his goal. "Sapnap!" Tommy shouted, looking at the male walking down the path with Dream and George. The three spun around, confused by Tommy's outburst, but the second Sapnap looked at him, he turned back. Sapnap said something to the two, then began to walk away, and Dream and George had no intent on letting Tommy by to talk to the other. Instead, they offered to hang out with him or walk him home. That was the day he made it his goal to get Sapnap to talk to him. 

That one was a little harder and took a little more than a week or two. Sapnap had always hung around someone. He was rarely alone, and when he was, he noticed Tommy coming and quickly retreated. So Tommy did what he had to. 

Sapnap was banging wordlessly on Tommy's door. Tommy swung open the door, and Sapnap pushed past, quickly walking in and searching the room.

"Seems like my plan worked," Tommy pointed out, watching Sapnap look under furniture and through chests. He didn't reply; instead, he just continued as if Tommy wasn't there. "Sapnap, you aren't going to find them without my help. Sit down." Sapnap continued to the kitchen, searching room by room. Still, he didn't talk nor stop his investigation. 

Sapnap turned and looked towards Tommy's bedroom door, and Tommy quickly shot up in realization, rushing to block his entry. "No, stop, and just listen." Sapnap didn't listen. Instead, he pushed Tommy aside and opened the door, walking in. Tommy quickly grabbed onto Sapnap in a panic. "Pay attention to me!" Tommy shouted, gripping tighter on Sapnap's still form. 

Sapnap stared at the wall covered with notes, with theories and plans. He then looked down at the boy wrapped around him, then back to the papers that consisted of messy scribbles for Techno's return. The room was still for a moment, then he heard Tommy whisper, "I'm sorry."

"What?" Sapnap asked, or at least thought he did. He only realized a second too late that he merely mouthed the words.

"It wasn't your fault. It was mine. I shouldn't have blamed you," Tommy said in response to Sapnap's silence. "I'm sorry. So please stop pushing me away, I don't want to lose you too." Sapnap only then noticed Tommy's grip had loosened, and the teen had merely been leaning against him now. His voice was scarily quiet, and Sapnap had never seen him so defeated. 

"Tommy," he murmured out, turning to get a better look at Tommy, who stumbled back and stared at the ground. "It wasn't your fault." He couldn't see Tommy's face, but he saw his hands clench together, and then noticed a few drops fall on the ground. "Have you been blaming yourself this whole time?" Tommy didn't respond, but the small, muffled sob answered his question. 

Sapnap knew how much it sucked to face blame for a tragedy after Tommy had accused him, but he always knew it wasn't his fault. Tommy, however, was left with the burden, and no one bothered to reassure him. "Tommy," he said, though it sounded a little harsher than he intended. Tommy raised his head, looking at Sapnap with teary eyes, and Sapnap had to try his best not to look away. "It's not your fault, understand?" 

"I could have stopped him, or helped him-," Tommy began, running a hand through his hair as he looked over to his wall of notes. Sapnap shook his head. 

"No, you couldn't. Techno's stubborn; when he has a plan, he goes through with it. It was his choice, not mine, not yours," Sapnap said, resting a hand on Tommy's shoulder. "It's not your fault." Tommy froze beneath his hand for a moment, then gave a sharp nod.

"Ok," he muttered, voice shaking. Sapnap sighed and pulled the teen in for a tight hug. 

"I forgive you, by the way. Just don't be a dick again," Sapnap muttered, hearing the boy let out a weak chuckle beneath his grip. "And I need my stuff back. Why'd you even steal my pillow, bandana, and shoes? I had to use Dream's shoes to come over when I saw your sticky note."

"It was the only way I knew to get your attention. You wouldn't listen when I shouted your name," Tommy huffed, pulling away and quickly retreating to his closet, pulling out the items Sapnap mentioned. 

"Yeah, because you were shouting. I thought you were still angry at me," Sapnap said, watching Tommy blink, then shake his head.

"That is stupid reasoning," was all Tommy said before glancing at the wall. Sapnap tied the white fabric around his head once more and looked to where Tommy stared as well.

"So, what's your conspiracy board over here about?" Sapnap asked, walking closer. He had a feeling he already knew. 

"It was supposed to be a secret. Wilbur and Philza will only help if I have everything planned and concrete ideas," Tommy explained, sitting on his bed with a huff. "Techno's not dead. You may not believe me, but-."

"Are you kidding? Dream's been saying the exact same shit. It's all he talks about at home. I kinda have to believe it," Sapnap explained, turning to Tommy, who had a shocked look on his face. "What?"

"Dream thinks Techno's alive?" Tommy asked, rising on his feet in alarm.

"Yeah, you didn't know? I was sure he was going to talk to you about it. Of course he thinks Techno's alive. You think he's going to believe someone who can 'rival' him would die that easily?" Sapnap asked, looking at Tommy's board of possibilities curiously. "Oh."

"Oh, what?" Tommy asked, but the only response he got was Sapnap grabbing one of the papers and ripping it off. "Hey! Don't ruin my- where are you going?" 

"Dream's gonna like this one. Come on," Sapnap hummed, gesturing for the boy to follow as he picked up his things and walked out. Tommy was following behind. 

Sapnap kicked open the door to the Dream Team's house, catching George's attention. "Oh my God, you are so annoying," George groaned, frowning from where he lounged on the couch, a bowl of popcorn in his lap. Sapnap hummed in amusement. 

"I didn't ask," Sapnap looked around the room, sighing. "Where's Dream?" George didn't respond. "George, where's Dream?"

"I didn't answer," George replied. Sapnap stomped over, grabbing the bowl from his lap and dumping it on George. 

"Sapnap!" George cried in alarm, causing the aforementioned male and Tommy to laugh. 

"What's going on?" Dream asked from the stairwell, leaning against the rail with mild amusement. Sapnap cheered in response, grinning.

"Look at that! George, your scream summoned him," Sapnap teased, looking back to the brunet, who threw the empty bowl at Sapnap, hitting him in the head. Dream laughed and continued down, picking a piece of popcorn from George's hair and eating it. 

"What're you doing here, Tommy?" Dream asked, drawing the blond's attention away from the bickering pair. 

"Sapnap wanted to show you my amazing plan," Tommy explained, looking over to the two once more. 

"You two made up?" Tommy hummed in response. "Plan for what?"

"To get Techno back." George now looked over from where he and Sapnap had been wrestling on the ground, before grinning at Sapnap.

"You're in trouble."

"What, why?" Sapnap asked, turning to look at Dream, who silently stared at him. "What'd I do?"

"You told him about Techno," George answered, shoving Sapnap off and picking himself up. "He specifically said not to tell anyone, especially Tommy."

"What, why not me?" Tommy cried out, looking to Dream for an explanation.

"Oh, I remember now," Sapnap said, running a hand through his hair as he got up. "He didn't want to give you false hope in case he was wrong and wanted you to grieve accordingly and move on." 

"I'm tired of people telling me to move on," Tommy groaned, shoving his hands in his pockets. "First Techno, now you."

"Mhm, I told him some hope was better than no hope, but he's stupid. Anyway, it doesn't matter. Tommy had already been planning before I told him; he has a wall full of notes, like yours," Sapnap explained, watching Dream's shoulders sink in defeat.

"I had a feeling that was gonna happen," Dream muttered, looking at Tommy with a frown. His white mask blocked his eyes, but Tommy could tell they were full of pity. 

"Yeah yeah, of course, it was. What matters most is that the kid has a good plan," Sapnap explained, holding out the paper for Dream. George tried to look at it, but Sapnap quickly moved it from his sight. "Ah-ah, let the adults talk first."

"I'm older than you, idiot. Both of you," George pointed out, shoving Sapnap as Dream grabbed the paper.

"Mending," Dream read, staring at the paper. "That could actually work." Dream looked to Tommy, who stared back, looking at the note to see what he wrote. 

"Duh," Tommy said, shrugging. "All of my ideas would work."

"A ritual to bring Techno back-," Dream read on, causing Tommy to snatch the note.

"I crossed that one out for a reason," he said quickly, pocketing the paper as the three laughed. "So, where do we find a mending book?"

"There's a villager a few towns over that sells one, but it costs a lot," George explained, picking up a few pieces of popcorn and eating them.

"Techno won't mind sparing some emeralds," Tommy hummed, shrugging. "I'll go get the book, then put it on."

"No, none of us know how to enchant. We don't want to mess it up either, we can't get another," Dream said, shaking his head. "You're not going alone either."

"So you're coming with?" Tommy asked, but once again, Dream shook his head. 

"I've got a town to protect; I can't leave Skeppy to do it alone," Dream explained. "Sapnap'll go with, but you should take someone else. I don't trust you two alone." Sapnap and Tommy gasped in shock.

"We'll be fine!" Sapnap stated, but Dream just stared at him. "Fine. Tommy, you said Wilbur and Philza would believe you if you have a plan?"

"Yeah! They'll come for sure!" Tommy cheered, turning to the door to leave. Dream stopped him.

"Whoa, slow down. We still don't have anyone to enchant the mirror." Tommy groaned in defeat and sighed. "Does anybody know anyone who studied the language?"

"Oh!" Tommy shouted, jumping in realization. "Sapnap, get the mirror and your stuff, I'll meet you at Techno's house." Tommy quickly ran out of the house, leaving the three standing there. 

"Guess he has a plan," Sapnap hummed in amusement. "Where's the mirror?"

"You don't already have it?" Dream asked with a confused frown. Sapnap groaned.

"Are you kidding me? You don't know where it is?"

"No," Dream said, shaking his head. George hummed from where he sat. 

"Clean up the mess, and I'll give it to you." Sapnap scoffed, looking at Dream with a shocked expression. "Who let George have the mirror?"

"He must've been the one to pick it up," Dream said with a shrug. "I'd get cleaning."

Upon arriving at Techno's house, Philza, Tommy, and Wilbur all sat around the steps. Wilbur seemed distressed while Philza was just looking at the two worriedly. "Tommy, I understand you have a plan, but you haven't explained it to us whatsoever," Wilbur complained.

"I know, I know. Listen, I have a plan-."

"We know! What is the plan?" Wilbur asked. The three had bags on their backs, while Tommy had an extra one full of emeralds. Sapnap quickly hurried forward.

"You didn't even tell them?" he asked with mild amusement, slowing to a stop. "We're going to get a mending book and fix the mirror."

"Thank you! Was that so hard, Tommy?" Wilbur asked, sighing. 

"Sapnap, it was going to be a secret," Tommy groaned, pushing himself up.

"Uh-huh, sure. Keeping your friends in the dark is a definite way to gain trust," Philza commented, watching Tommy nod with an amused smile, before standing.

"Agreed, Philza. It was a good idea," Tommy said, walking over to Sapnap. "Got the map and the mirror?" 

"Yeah, and I've got to do George's bidding when I return. Thanks a lot," Sapnap commented as he began down the path. 

"It'll be worth it." No one disagreed.

A day and a half had passed when they arrived at the village, which was admittedly a lot larger than their own. The four roamed the streets, looking at the different shops curiously.

"So, where do we find mending books?" Tommy asked, looking to Sapnap. Sapnap merely shrugged. They quietly walked down the market for a few more minutes before Philza stopped.

"The book store will have some," Philza hummed, and the four crowded into the quiet building. There, at the front desk, sat a man with sunglasses and a gray shirt. Tommy looked at the group, then to the man.

"Leave the talking to me."

"No," Wilbur quickly interjected, pushing Tommy aside. "Hello," he greeted as he approached the man. 

"Hi, I'm Eret. What can I help you with today?" the man asked, sitting up with a smile. Wilbur could've sworn he heard Tommy mention something to Sapnap about how he needed to have as cool of a voice for Tommy to respect him. 

"Do you happen to have a mending book?" Wilbur asked, and Eret hummed in response. He pulled out a book, strapped closed with a red band, and set it in front of him. Tommy quickly rushed forward and looked at it. 

"How much?" he asked, pulling out the bag of emeralds. Eret grinned.

"Sixteen emeralds. I'll need to see your enchantment diploma, though," Eret explained, a smile still remaining. Tommy froze and looked at the book, then at Eret, then to the group. 

"One moment," Tommy said, walking over to the three. 

"I was-. Ok," Eret began, stopping when the teen walked away.

"Ok, when I say, run," Tommy whispered before he turned back to Eret, ignoring the three's protest. "Listen, Eret. I really like you. How could I hate someone with a voice like yours? Your voice is so great," Tommy admitted, causing the male to laugh. 

"Thanks?" 

"Which is why I hate to do this," Tommy said, before tossing the bag of emeralds at Eret, who caught them, then grabbing the book and shouting 'run'! The group followed the blond teen as he ran out of the store. Eret watched as they left, confusion flooding his face.

"I was joking about the diploma," he murmured under his breath. 

Tommy hurried out of the village, the three trailing after. "Tommy, you just gave him all of the emeralds!" Sapnap shouted as they neared the woods.

"Had to, compensation. Maybe he won't turn us in to the cops now," Tommy said as he slowed to a walk. 

"Tommy, the bag had the money for renting a room in a hotel. Where are we supposed to sleep now?" Wilbur asked, watching Tommy blink in realization. 

"Don't worry," he called back to them. "I have a plan, follow me." The three groaned at his response but followed behind anyway.

"You don't plan on telling us your plan?" Philza asked, but the lack of reply was enough of an answer. 

The three walked a little longer than they had the first day, and around two in the morning came upon a cabin. Tommy held a finger to his lips and walked over to the door, picking up the mat and finding a spare key underneath. He quickly unlocked the door and waved the others to come along.

"Tommy, your plan was to break into someone's house?" Sapnap asked in a whisper, watching Tommy shrug. "This is illegal."

"No, it's fine," Tommy said quietly, walking in. Wilbur quickly followed him, then the other two.

"You can't just say it's fine; that doesn't make it legal," Wilbur murmured, scolding Tommy. 

Tommy huffed in annoyance, looking to the stairs. "It's fine, watch," he repeated, before clearing his throat. "Oh, Tubbo!" he shouted, the noise reverberating off the walls. After a few moments, a brunet came walking down the stairs, rubbing his eyes sleepily. 

"Tommy?" he murmured, blinking as he turned on a lantern. "What're you doing here?" he asked, looking from the blond to the rest behind him. "Are you in trouble again?"

"No," Tommy hummed, before stopping. "Actually, yes. I stole this." Tommy pulled out the book from his bag and tossed it to Tubbo, who barely had enough time to set the lantern aside before he caught it. 

"A mending book? Why? Is it a gift for me?" Tubbo asked, looking at Tommy, who stared back with a confused expression. 

"No, why would it be for you?" Tommy asked, running a hand through his hair. 

"Oh, because we're friends," Tubbo explained, "And friends give each other gifts!" A small smile spread across Tubbo's face, and he looked around. "Who're they?"

"My servants- ow! My friends. Philza, Wilbur, and Sapnap," Tommy introduced, each of them giving a small greeting. "Let us sleep here for tonight," Tommy demanded before a hand pinched his arm. "Ow!"

"Say please," Wilbur scolded, and Tommy rolled his eyes. 

"Please let us stay here for tonight," he requested, and Wilbur nodded. 

"Ok!" Tubbo said, setting the book aside and gesturing to the couch in the room. "I only have three guest bedrooms, so one of you can sleep on the couch unless you want to sleep in my room with me, Tommy."

"What, no, that's weird. Sapnap will sleep on the couch," Tommy explained, ignoring the glare Sapnap gave him. Tommy got another wack on the head from Wilbur and turned in alarm to see him mouth 'thank him.' 

"Thanks, Tubbo," Tommy hummed as he followed Tubbo up the stairs with Philza and Wilbur.

In the morning, Tommy awoke to a knock at the door. "Do you want some breakfast?" Tubbo asked from outside the door. Tommy murmured some form of confirmation and managed to push himself out of bed, rubbing his eyes drearily. 

Upon making it downstairs, he found Tubbo and Sapnap in the kitchen. Sapnap was flipping a pancake while Tubbo was setting the table. "He's gonna poison them," Tommy pointed out as he walked over to the table.

"No, I'm not, brat," Sapnap said, rolling his eyes. Tommy looked at the thin layer of dust sitting on his chair and frowned.

"It's dusty," he pointed out, and Tubbo nodded.

"Well yeah, I don't get many visitors, so I don't have much use for them," he admitted. He grabbed the book from the day before and handed it to Tommy. 

"Well, I'll visit more," Sapnap offered as he set aside one of the pancakes. Tommy looked between the two with a frown.

"I can't believe my best friend bonded with my enemy," Tommy muttered, opening the book and looking at the runes. 

"You never mentioned Tubbo before, is he really your best friend?" Sapnap teased, looking at Tommy. Tommy gasped in offense, setting the book down.

"I have too! Just not with you! Mainly with Techno, Wilbur and Philza even knew of him," Tommy explained, earning a hum of agreement from Philza as he walked down the stairs. "Tubbo, you took runes in school, right? Can you read this?" Tommy asked, showing the boy. 

"Yeah," Tubbo nodded, smiling. "How is Techno, by the way? Last I saw him was months ago." The group fell silent, and Tubbo blinked in confusion. "Did I say something?"

"Techno's fine; he's just gone. He's trapped in another world, and we're going to save him," Tommy explained with a nod, looking at the book once more. "I need you to put this enchantment on a mirror."

"Ok," Tubbo nodded in agreement. "I'll do anything to help," he offered, waving at Wilbur as the boy made his way down the stairs. 

Sapnap walked over with five plates of pancakes and set them out, "Not until after breakfast." The meal was comfortably quiet until Sapnap broke the silence. "Why're you in the woods alone?"

"My parents and I had some disagreements, so I left. I've been doing fine on my own, though, so no worries," Tubbo explained after swallowing and taking a drink of water. 

"Oh, sorry," Sapnap muttered, and Tubbo shrugged in response. 

"It's ok. Besides, Tommy comes over a couple of times a month, so I'm not completely alone," Tubbo admitted, biting into the pancake once more.

"Yeah, but no one should be stuck with only Tommy," Sapnap pointed out, causing Philza, Wilbur, and Tubbo to laugh. Tommy huffed in annoyance and opened his mouth to protest, but Sapnap cut him off. "Why don't you move to the village?"

"What village?" Tubbo asked, before blinking in realization. "Oh, your village. I'd like to, but Tommy said Dream, Techno, and Skeppy would have to decide on it," Tubbo explained.

Sapnap hummed in thought, "Yeah when it comes to Tommy's friends, you can never really trust his judgment. You've got my seal of approval, though, so you're welcome there anytime." Tommy scoffed from where he sat.

"I've been trying to get him in for months! And all it takes is a simple sure from you?"

"Yeah, I guess I'm just better than you," Sapnap claimed, looking to Tommy with a grin. Tubbo smiled brightly and nodded.

"Sure, I'd love to come."

"You can live with Tommy," Philza offered, and before Tommy could say anything, Wilbur glared at him. "At least, until you get settled. Right, Tommy?"

"Right," Tommy muttered in defeat, watching Wilbur's gaze shift away. Tubbo seemed oblivious to his upset tone and smiled.

"Thanks, Tommy." Tubbo opened the book, setting his empty plate aside and skimming the runes. "Now, let's get that mirror fixed." Tommy nodded in agreement, retrieving the mirror from Sapnap and handing it to Tubbo.

"Let's get Techno back."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IM SO HYPED FOR THE NEXT MCC!! and I guess for the next chapter, but that's not important,, 
> 
> anyways,, ty for reading!! two chapters left, so they're probably gonna be longer :) I hope you didn't mind a few cameos bc I've been watching way too many vods.
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter, and I hope no one was ooc,, if they were Im sorry ,'(
> 
> Stay safe!! Have an amazing morning/afternoon/evening/night!! I love you all <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Techno, Mimic, and Zero adventures (but mainly Zero).

Zero was the name they decided for him. He found it fitting; after all, he knew absolutely nothing about what was going on. No, that was a lie. He understood three things.

First, he understood that the two voices in his mind's names were Techno and Mimic. Well, all of their names were Techno, but to help ease confusion among him and the group following behind him, they assigned the name Zero to him, and Mimic to the nicer one. The tired one got to keep being Techno.

Secondly, he understood how unwanted he was. The group behind him sounded increasingly annoyed when Tommy introduced him. Mimic and Techno told him their names, but he couldn't remember them. Mimic walked him through what to say, directions, orders, but it didn't seem to matter to the team. The majority of the crowd following his instructions disliked him.

The final truth? Tommy, Philza, and Wilbur liked him. At least, Techno and Mimic claimed they did. They were the only ones whose names he remembered. "Why does Wilbur always look so sad?" He learned to talk to the duo in his mind through thoughts more often. It doesn't give him as many questioning looks. 

"Because he is," Techno said plainly, earning a noise of disagreement from Mimic.

"No, he's just more likely to feel more negative emotions than positive ones," Mimic corrected. Techno scoffed at him, and Zero sighed. They bickered a lot, and it gave him a headache.

"That's what I said; he is sad," Techno pointed out.

"Not all of the time!" Mimic argued back in a sing-songy voice, but Zero could tell he was getting frustrated.

"I didn't say all of the time," Techno sung back in a plain voice.

"Hey Wilbur, why are you sad?" Zero asked as he approached the boy walking beside Philza. Wilbur looked to him with a puzzled gaze, and the voices in his mind shouted at him to stop.

"You don't just ask someone that!" Mimic scolded, while Techno told him to say 'nevermind.' He didn't, and that was the newest truth he learned. Sometimes he shouldn't listen to the voices in his head.

"Huh? I don't know," Wilbur confessed, looking back ahead as they walked. The two didn't seem to notice Philza and Tommy's eyes on them. Or the whole group for that matter. "I've never gotten asked, so I've never really thought about it. Why?"

"I haven't had any emotions besides panic, but I know what they are. Being sad isn't ideal; people prefer to be happy. If you understand why you're upset, you can get rid of the source and feel better," Zero explained, looking at Wilbur, who blinked. 

"That sounded a lot like our Techno, sweet but oddly violent," Tommy muttered, looking at Wilbur with a shrug. Wilbur nodded in agreement, then looked to Zero with a hard gaze.

"I guess it's just stressful here. Everyone else deals with it, though, so I should too," Wilbur dismissed with a small shrug. 

"How do you know?"

"What?" Zero sighed and looked forward, then to the map, before taking a left. 

"How do you know everyone deals with it? Have you talked with people about it?" Wilbur shook his head wordlessly, blinking in confusion. Zero glanced back at the group with weary eyes, a worn expression on his face. "They're your friends, right?" Wilbur shrugged, once more resorting to silence. "You don't think of them as friends." It wasn't a question.

"I do!" Wilbur was quick to defend himself, but his confident answer faded with a sigh. "Sometimes we don't act like friends, though; it's weird. Fighting is natural among friends, but Philza, Tommy, Techno, and I don't fight that much. And we have a better relationship than any other I've ever had. I just- nevermind. Yeah, we're friends." Wilbur looked at the ground with a deep frown, and Zero hummed. 

Zero then became distinctly aware of how quiet it was, not only amongst the group but in his mind. "You're friends, so tell them about what you have issues with, and work towards fixing it together. Leaning on each other is a part of being friends, and it's healthier to talk about things than to keep them bottled up, right?" Zero looked back to the group, meeting some of their eyes.

"Yeah, you can talk to me if you need to, Wilbur," Tommy said, smiling at the brunet with a thumbs up. Philza grunted in agreement. 

"Me too," A6D added in, slinging an arm around Wilbur and smiling at him. Mega nodded and mimicked Tommy's thumbs up. 

"I'd be fine to listen," Dream said shyly from beside George and Sapnap, but the two didn't seem to be upset with his answer. 

"If it gets you out of that shitty mood of yours, I think all of us will," George muttered, though his voice sounded softer than his words. There were various hums of agreement, and Wilbur smiled faintly, nodding.

"Thanks, I appreciate it," Wilbur stated, nodding towards Zero. Skeppy walked forward and looked at Zero with suspicion.

"Why'd it matter to you, anyway? You don't know us."

"It didn't matter to me," Zero answered with a shrug. "It mattered to Mimic," Zero paused, "and Techno."

"Why'd that matter to you?" Mimic asked, an annoyed edge to his voice. Techno sighed, and Zero felt the urge to shrug. 

"Seeing someone you've always consider a friend sad would trouble anyone, I'm just not good enough with words to comfort."

"Yeah, we know that. I'm not blunt enough to approach it, especially not publically," Mimic pointed out. Zero ignored their conversation, which he's found out he's quite good at.

"Which one's Mimic, and which one's Techno?" Zelkam asked as he walked to speed up closer to Zero.

"Mimic is the brighter one, Techno's the tired one," he explained, relieved the masked boy seemed to understand what he meant. Spifey copied Zelk's actions and sped up to walk on the opposite side of Zero, nudging Skeppy aside. Skeppy looked like he was about to say something but huffed in defeat.

"You can talk to them and hear them?"

"Sadly." The two were silent once more, before Techno laughed, and Mimic made an offended noise. 

"Ask them where we're going and why we're trying to get back to the other world anyway," Spifey ordered. 

"You haven't fucking figured it out yet? Are you brainless or what?" Bad asked, watching as Spifey looked towards him with a masked glare. 

"Care to enlighten us, Bad?" Zelk asked as he walked backward. 

"I want nothing more than to inform the brainless bunch of the goal," Bad replied, grinning as Skeppy wheezed beside him. "If we get them through the portal, it may split them. Techno will be in his world, and Techno'll be in ours."

"Ok, but where are we going?" A6D asked, but all he received was a shrug. 

"How am I suppose to fucking know?" Bad asked, grinning at A6D's frown.

"You haven't figured it out yet?" Spifey teased, gaze remaining on Bad.

"Are you brainless or what?" Zelkam said, his grin evident in his tone. 

"If your world is almost identical to Techno's, then he knows where a mending book is. Techno says he found it before, but he kept it hidden under his bed because he didn't have a use for it at the time," Zero explained, looking over to Zelk as the boy spun back around. 

"Ok, but where?"

"Just past these villages, there's a cave that leads to some dungeons," Zero explained, pointing at the map as the group surrounded him. 

"Oh, where are we now?" Dream asked, looking over Techno's shoulders on his tiptoes. Zero looked at the map, for once not needing to be told an answer, and pointed to the path they were on. It was nearing one of the villages but still quite a distance away from the mines. Tommy muttered something, but Zero didn't catch it.

"So, we're almost to our first village?" George asked, earning a hum of agreement.

"Techno's the only one that's been here before," Sapnap pointed out, looking up ahead as he saw buildings in the distance.

"Really?" Zero asked, recognizing the newfound attention Mimic now had to the map. 

"Oh, don't tell me you forgot about me already," a voice challenged from the left of Zero. He looked in the direction and found an older teenager with dark ocean blue hair standing there. His eyes were bright gold, and he wore a black hoodie that had a tuxedo design, and black sweatpants. 

Zero blinked in alarm at Mimic's immediate reaction. "Get him." He repeated the phrase like a mantra, each time getting louder and more aggressive. Techno kept yelling at him not to attack, but the Mimic's voice overpowered his. 

"You didn't forget me, that's sweet!" the boy said with a wide smile, clapping excitedly. "Then you know that this is my village. And what happens if you try invading Squid's village?" His smile remained as Techno's group was surrounded by a bunch of masked strangers. "Well... you learned last time. You lose."

Zero felt his heart pound in his chest as Mimic's voice became deafening in his ears. "Shut him up! Shut him up. Get him!" Zero's body moved on impulse as he ran at Squid, jumping out of the way of his goons and dodging any weapons swung his way. The others took this as their signal and followed his lead, attacking the strangers circling them. 

Zero didn't care; he only cared about getting rid of the burning rage he felt in his chest. He only cared about winning. He grabbed one of the masked figures who had tried to stop him and threw him onto the other, ignoring the cry of pain when the knife he held pierced the other's shoulder. 

He barely avoided being stabbed by a hoe as he ducked and rolled out of the way of Squid's attack. The boy didn't seem the least bit disappointed at his miss, and that seemed to spark even more rage in Mimic, in Zero. 

Zero slung a leg under Squid, knocking him over, but the boy quickly dodged Zero's punch as he shoved himself to the side. Squid reached for his hoe that he had dropped, but Zero's foot kicked it aside as he loomed over the teen. 

Squid grinned up at the boy with a calm stare. "You look angry." 

"Shut him up!" Mimic demanded, and Zero wasn't one to disappoint. Zero sent a sharp kick to Squid's side, who winced in response, but otherwise made no reaction. If at first you don't succeed, try try again. 

Squid groaned as he coughed up a bit of blood, trying to shield his face from Zero, who's ruthless attacks had been continuous. He peeked out with a pained grin, red-stained teeth. "You seem weaker than before. Is this the best you got?" Techno's foot found its way atop Squid's chest, increasing pressure as he watched with uncaring eyes. Squid's face quickly morphed to one of panic as he began trying to shove the male off, coughing and gasping for air. 

Zero didn't stop until he got yanked off, two people holding his arms tightly as he struggled against them, feeling himself dragged away from Squid. He looked around, noticing it was Philza and Wilbur who had grabbed him, which lessened his panic, but he still focused on the goal at hand. Winning was his priority. 

Tommy quickly stepped into view, blocking his sight from Squid, and it was then that Techno noticed he could only really hear the pounding in his ears. Tommy's mouth was moving, but he could hardly understand him, only making out words if he really focused. He then became distinctly aware of cold hands on his face, soothing his shaking body. 

When did he start shaking? He looked at Tommy's blue eyes, breathing heavily as the boy's voice came in clearer. "-Calm down, Techno. Take a deep breath." Zero did as he instructed, watching as Tommy's worried expression softened. He felt himself slowly become limp in Wilbur and Philza's arms, watching Tommy nod. "I know you're upset, but you won. Ok? You're ok, keep breathing slowly." Zero nodded, but he had a feeling Tommy wasn't really talking to him.

"Ok," he muttered, the Mimic in his head now quiet as well. Tommy removed his hands from his face, and Zero felt his arms released by the other two, and a hand roughly rustled his hair. 

"Didn't miss that," Philza said. Wilbur chuckled from beside him as the two looked over to the empty ground where Squid Kid had once been. 

"Good to know Zero still has Techno's murderous rampages, but that one was eerie with how blank-faced he was," George called from Techno's right. He looked over to the boy and quickly grabbed one of the discarded knives off the ground, throwing it without hesitation. "That wasn't even close to me," George quipped as the blade flew yards away from him. George spun around to look at the weapon's location, then blinked. "Shit." Behind George stood Dream in a tense position as a male crumpled forward onto him.

Dream winced, shoving the man with a knife in his back off of him and staggered with a small whine, gripping at the large gash across his arm. "Bad," George snapped, rushing over to Dream. Sapnap caught the potion the male threw at them and poured it on the wound, watching as the injury closed up, leaving only a thin cut. 

"I told you to stay behind me!" George shouted, watching as Dream shrunk in shame. Sapnap hissed at him to shut up, but George ignored him. 

"I know, I did, but you were distracted with Techno and didn't see them," Dream muttered. Sapnap wrapped his arm with bandages as he got scolded. 

"So it's my fault," George asked, and though his voice was rough, his frown softened. 

"No- no! That's not it-." 

"Damn it, Dream," George muttered, pulling the smaller male in a tight grip. "It's my fault, so shut the hell up." Dream nodded as he looked at George, who's grip on his arm loosened slightly. "I'm sorry. I'll protect you   
better next time."

Dream nodded, a small smile painting his face. "I know you will," he assured. George glared at him, shaking his head. 

"You're too fucking forgiving. This world is going to tear you apart no matter how hard I try to toughen you up," George grumbled, shoving Dream gently. 

"You're angry," Dream pointed out, frowning. "I'm-."

"No, I'm not." George ran a hand through his hair and fixed his hat. He looked at Sapnap, who pocketed the bandages. "Just upset, no, not with you."

"Poor Georgey is whiny because he couldn't keep you from getting a scratch," Sapnap teased, smacking the bill of George's hat off with a grin.

"Shut up, asshole," George muttered, grabbing his hat and putting it back on once more. Dream grinned, tilting his head.

"That's sweet," he hummed, looking at Sapnap, who grinned back. "Thank you, George."

"Shut up," George hissed, shoving Sapnap to the side as he laughed. "Sapnap's upset he couldn't help either."

"Sure," Sapnap muttered, flipping George off. "You are fine, though, right?"

"Yeah, just a little cut. Like the ones I get in our manhunt games," Dream assured quietly, nodding. 

"You only get those cuts because you're too slow," George pointed out, rolling his eyes. "We'll work on your dodging more later."

Zero heard Techno scoff in the back of his mind, but he was unsure why. He shrugged and looked back to the map, any and all anger from before forgotten. He walked forward, gaining the others' attention as he stepped over unconscious bodies and continued into the woods.

"And we're off," Skeppy announced, following behind Techno as they continued towards the village. 

...

..

.

It took two days to get to the cave. In that time, Zero learned everyone's names, which was an improvement. He also reinforced the fact that Techno and Mimic hated one another.

"No, a few people should wait out here and keep watch, then a few should be in the cave, in case we need help, then a few should come into the dungeon with us."

"Good luck trying to get them to stay, they all want some loot," the Mimic argued back, making Techno groan.

"Then help me convince them. Or is that too hard for you?" Techno offered. 

"Hm, no," Mimic answered with a hum.

"You're so dumb. If your friends end up getting hurt, it's your fault," Techno explained, watching out Zero's- his eyes- as the sun rose.

"You two are loud," Zero muttered, sighing softly. The two didn't acknowledge him. 

"Is that a threat?"

"No? I can't even do anything. I'm just saying, this is the best plan to get the book. Do you not want your own body?" Techno reasoned, confusion peaking in his voice as Zero rose and began towards the cave. "What are you doing?"

"Going to get the book," Zero replied as he grabbed a torch, strolling into the darkness.

"Alone?" Mimic asked, though he didn't sound entirely upset. Zero nodded as he descended into the darkness. "They aren't going to appreciate you going by yourself."

"Well, it'll get you two to shut up, and I'm tired of the headaches," Zero answered, swiping his pink hair out of his eyes as he took a left, instructed by Techno.

"And if you get ambushed like you did back in Squid's village? You don't have anyone to help this time. You'll die," Techno warned plainly, watching as Zero sliced down a zombie with ease.

"Then I guess all of our problems will be solved," Zero replied, pulling his sword out and quickly taking out a nearby spider. "But don't worry, I won't die."

"Cocky." 

"Confident," Mimic added with an amused voice.

"The voices in my head taught me nothing but the best. Which way?" Techno directed him further into the cave until finally, he hit a cobblestone room. 

"You don't have a pickaxe," Techno pointed out as he narrowly avoided a skeleton's arrow. Luckily one of the five had shot another, so two were distracted. 

"Nope," Zero grunted as an arrow grazed his cheek. "Do I need one?"

"It's preferable, so the monsters don't spawn. That thing there is called a spawner; it was made with magic to protect the creator's stuff," Mimic explained, making a noise of distaste as three more skeletons appeared from thin air.

"Oh, darn," Zero replied plainly as an arrow split the skin on his arm. "Where's the book?"

"In one of the chests," Techno replied, before quickly adding a "duck." Zero ducked as the arrow flew above his head, sticking into the wall. He managed to turn the monster back into dust, but with every skeleton killed, three more spawned. 

Zero groaned as the room filled and resheathed his sword. "What are you doing?" Mimic asked, but he didn't respond. Instead, he dodged the projectiles shot his way and picked up the two chests. With the heavy pieces of wood tucked safely under his arm, he hurried out of the room.

Sadly, the world didn't seem to think the weight under his arms nor the screams of protest in his head were enough of a burden, and as he left, he felt a variety of sharp pains in his legs and arms. The worst, however, was in his lower back. The arrow that stuck out there caused an audible shout from him. 

He moved forward, albeit slower, but still as determined as he was before. He managed to make it a little further before he felt another arrow jab into his upper arm. Zero almost lost his grip; he won't lose his grip. He looked up with blurry vision but pushed forward. He won't lose his grip.

Another pain, this one was from the side. A spider clung to his arm, biting into his skin like its life depended on it, and Zero quickly slammed it into the wall, knocking the bug off. He was almost to the exit. He could see it. Zero let out a strangled cry as he felt another arrow hit his arm, and he felt his grip loosen. 

The voices in his head were loud as he toppled onto the ground, limbs shaking as they tried to hold him up. He couldn't hear a word they said, though. All he could hear was the pounding in his ears. He looked up at the entrance of the cave with labored breath and blurry vision, crying out once more as teeth dug into his calf. He barely had enough energy to kick the zombie away.

He felt his eyes droop as he looked back towards the entrance, but the light he saw before was no longer there. It was dark. It was quiet.

...

..

.

"What the hell happened to him?" Zero blinked as the light blinded him. "Multiple arrow wounds, apparently, spider bite, and he got bit by a zombie? Did he walk weaponless through a forest at night, or is he just that horribly unlucky?"

"He went into a fucking cave dungeon thing by himself." Bad. That was Bad's voice. He wanted to say something, wanted to move, but he felt too weak. 

"That was stupid," the unrecognizable voice scoffed. "Tommy, go get a golden apple out of my chest." The sound of footsteps, then vibrant green eyes stared into his. "'Ello, I'm Tubbo."

"Hi," he mouthed, but he couldn't do much besides that. Tubbo hummed at his response. 

"You've got a potion of weakness in your system. It's why you can't move, but I'm going to need you to eat this," Tubbo explained, grabbing the apple from Tommy's hand and shoving it in his face. He sighed when Zero didn't move and shoved the fruit into his mouth, forcing the bite. 

Zero felt a surge of relief upon swallowing the treat, and the searing pain in his leg subsided. He felt his fingers twitch as he tested his motor skills before blinking at a sudden voice.

"You're so lucky they found you. If you killed us, I'd kill you," Mimic groaned in his mind. Zero ignored him and pushed himself up.

"Really? How'd that work?" he muttered to himself.

"I agree, how would that work?" Techno asked, listening to the Mimic huff.

"Are you really siding with him to annoy me?"

"No, but if you would've noticed, he doesn't care. No amount of scolding is going to change that," Techno explained. Zero hummed in agreement.

"He's right; I don't care. I haven't this whole trip," Zero explained, looking up and gazing at Tommy.

"That's not true," Mimic hummed in amusement. 

"What do you mean?" Zero asked as he looked away from Tommy's confused face.

"You really are like us, masking your good intentions from others and playing it off as nothing. Sucks for you, we're in your mind. If you really didn't care, you would've dropped the chests and escaped yourself." Mimic pointed out, causing Zero to blink in acknowledgment.

"You said the other's would be upset with me if I went in alone because they want loot. The easiest way was to get the chests and run. That's not caring," Zero looked over to Tubbo, who stared at him with a confused expression, then to Tommy. 

"Sorry to tell you, but it sounds like you cared whether or not they were upset with you," Techno pointed out. 

"Did you bang your head around too, or are you just insane?" Tubbo asked, pulling Zero out of his conversation.

"Sadly, the latter," Zero muttered as he brushed his hair back, wincing at the pain in his arm. He looked over to see the cuts stitched up and slightly healed.

"No, you're not- I'll explain it to you later, Tubbo," Tommy offered, watching Tubbo shrug. "Zero, what the hell was that?"

"Oh, an angry Tommy. That's not something you see every day," Tubbo commented, looking over to Bad, who strolled out of the room to who knows where. 

"Not now, Tubbo."

"Hey, don't take your anger out on me," Tubbo grumbled, glaring at the boy behind his messy, brown hair. "I was kind enough to patch up your friend, use my supplies on him, and house all- what? Thirteen of you?"  
Tubbo wore a dark red shirt, buttoned and tucked into black dress pants. He had a few bandages littering his exposed arms, visible due to his rolled-up sleeves.

Tommy nodded with a small frown. "Yeah, you're right, Tubbo. Sorry," he said sincerely, earning a small huff from the boy, before looking back to Techno. "So?" he asked once more, but this time he seemed less upset.

"Well, Techno and Mimic were arguing again over what to do about the cave. I got tired of it and went in myself, but I didn't have a pickaxe. Too many skeletons spawned, and so I grabbed the chests and booked it. Didn't make it, though."

"Why'd you take both chests?" Tommy asked, but Zero knew he already knew the answer. He chose to keep his mouth shut, instead, which made Tommy huff. "That was a stupid reason."

"Maybe," Zero shrugged, pushing himself off the bed. Zero winced at his leg's injury but continued towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Tommy hissed, standing in front of Zero to stop him. 

"They want to see the book," Zero explained as he gestured for Tommy to move. 

"What book?" Tubbo asked, grabbing Zero and shoving him back to sit on the bed. 

"Mending," Tommy muttered, grabbing the mirror off of Techno's shirt and cloak pooled on a nearby chair. "We need to fix this."

"Can you even put it on?" Tubbo asked in an annoyed tone, looking at Zero. 

"Mimic and Techno could, right?" Tommy asked, looking at Zero with a curious stare. 

"Ok, I seriously need some explanations. I thought that he was Techno-?" Zero tuned out their conversation, focusing instead on the voices in his mind.

"We both know runes, but Zero doesn't. He didn't even know that you had to break a spawner," Mimic pointed out, sighing as Zero picked at the bedding.

"Can't you just tell me what it says?" he thought to the two but received only silence. After a minute passed, Techno muttered silently to himself. "What?"

"I don't think that'd work. You have to understand what you're saying when enchanting. We could teach you, but that'd take a while," Techno explained.

"Zero." A hand waved in front of his face, but Zero didn't register it.

"So, what do we do?" he thought to the two, but all he received was silence.

"Tommy wants you," Mimic pointed out as the hand returned once more, making Zero's head snap up. 

"Yeah?" he asked, looking at the blond with a blank gaze. 

"Tubbo knows runes," Tommy said, gesturing to the boy. 

"That's good!" Mimic chirped in his mind, earning a hum of agreement from Techno. 

"But-."

"Of course there's a but," Techno muttered.

"He wants to keep the chest's loot, besides the book, of course," Tommy explained, shifting under his gaze. 

"Shit," Mimic murmured.

"What?" Techno asked, his voice bordering amusement at the other's tone.

"The other's are already probably pissed he went in alone, but now they aren't even getting an award for rescuing Zero," Mimic explained. 

"Oh," Techno muttered, "Is there anything else we can do?"

"Sure," Zero answered before the other two could talk any more, earning loud protests. "Where're the others? I'll tell them." 

"Downstairs," Tommy muttered. "Are you sure? I can tell them-."

"Nope, I got it," Zero said as he hurried out the door before the two could stop him. He looked over the stair's railing at the group, clearing his throat to catch their attention.

The chatter had quickly silenced; his mind had silenced. Everything was quiet. "In exchange for Tubbo's help and hospitality, we'll be giving him the dungeon's loot. Aside from the mending book. If you have a problem with it, I'll be sure to tell Mi-Techno about how you'd prefer some loot from a dungeon to his return. I'm sure he and his family will be delighted to hear it," Zero explained, smiling when there was no objection to his announcement. Wilbur and Philza seemed to be surveying the room.

"You're manipulative as hell," Mimic laughed. Zero shrugged, looking to Tubbo and Tommy and giving them a thumbs up.

"Yeah, I guess," he murmured under his breath.

"We need to hurry up," Techno said with a worried tone.

"Why?" Mimic asked curiously. 

"Haven't you noticed Zero's change from the beginning of the trip to now? He's becoming more of his own person, and I don't want to know what happens to us if he fully becomes Zero," Techno explained, not caring if Zero could hear him. Honestly, Zero couldn't blame him, but he didn't care either.

"Well," he hummed, retrieving the book from the chest that sat against the wall on the top floor. "Better hurry before whatever this is becomes irreversible." He closed the chest with the book in hand, spinning around and coming face to face with Tommy and Tubbo.

"Before what becomes irreversible?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT'S BEEN A WHILE IM SORRY!!  
> I love reading your comments so much. Do I pick favorites in the comments?? Absolutely :)))) 
> 
> I got another editor to reread after my sibling does bc I've made a few mistakes in writing, such as chapter 2 "Sapnap was had his staff out" ,'( unepic,, Editor 2 says I used a lot more adjectives in my dialogue, so if that was annoying, whoops I'm too tired to take some out rn,,
> 
> Also, at some points I referred to Zero as Techno!! It was intentionally, after all, they are all Techno :) It's sorta a reminder, and to keep things from becoming too repetitive, but if it got confusing, please tell me :))!! 
> 
> Anyways, it's 4am, I'm tired :) 
> 
> Thank you all for reading, Stay safe, I love you all, and have a wonderful morning/afternoon/evening/night <3
> 
> Ps, I love and appreciate all of your comments. Each of them are unique and great to read, and honestly make my day. If you comment, ur already a favorite dw about it <33 If you don't comment, I still love u I guess :// JKJK ILY MUAH


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When you get to it, OG world is BOLD,, Mimic world is normal text :)
> 
> Also, in case you forgot the last chapter's ending: Tommy and Tubbo just found out about how this may become irreversible.

Zero couldn't meet Tommy's eyes, and even if he could, he wouldn't. His eyes bore into him with so much pain and worry that it physically hurt to look at him. 

"Are you sure? What happens to Techno and- well Techno if you become a separate person?" Tommy asked in a hushed whisper, noticing how the dark blue eyes never met his. "Will they still be around?"

"If the universe is slowly merging us into one naturally neutral person to balance out everything, probably not," Techno pointed out in the back of his mind, but despite this, Zero nodded.

"They're damn persistent when screaming at each other over who's plan is better. I'm sure they'll be just as persistent when it comes to something like living," Zero explained, pushing himself up and handing Tubbo the book, who silently stared down at it. He glanced back at Tommy, but the blond's head remained down. 

"He's sad," Mimic pointed out as if Zero would know what to do with the information. At his lack of movement though, Techno interjected. 

"Hug him." Zero quickly shook his head and brushed past the two boys, a small surge of panic filling him. 

"What the hell, don't just leave Tommy back there. What're you scared of?" Mimic asked, pointing out the pit of worry sitting in Zero's stomach. Zero just shrugged as he made his way down the stairs, glancing back once to see Tubbo awkwardly patting Tommy's back. 

"I don't like physical contact either, but sometimes you have to put up with it for the people you care about," Techno muttered. Zero sighed as he glanced over at the group that had come along on the journey; the living room was loud with conversation. 

"I don't," Zero muttered, turning towards the front door and walking out; it was midday. 

"Don't what?" Zero felt a headache was coming. He collapsed onto the wooden stairs leading off towards the path with a soft sigh.

"I don't care about them," he answered. He was right about the headache based on the shouting protests he could hardly decipher. "Ow, shut up."

"What do you mean you don't care about them? They're our friends!" Mimic shouted, ignoring how Zero winced at the noise.

"No, they're your friends," Zero pointed out as he fiddled with the cuffs of his outfit. "I'm a stranger to them. They only stick around for you." Although the silence in his mind lessened the pain in his head, it didn't help with the pain in his chest. 

"But that doesn't mean you don't care about them. You may not want to care about our friends, but you are Technoblade too. You care." Zero huffed and ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head.

"Nope."

"Why are you so stubborn," Techno muttered with a small groan. Zero ignored him, though, and instead looked towards the door that had opened. Philza walked out and glanced down at Zero with a frown.

"Thought you ran off like a dumbass again," he explained as he walked over and sat on the stairs next to him. Zero shrugged, trying to avoid the stare Phil was giving him. "How're your injuries?"

"They're mostly healed." Philza didn't respond; in fact, the silence remained for a few minutes. Zero was about to excuse himself, but Philza looked at him once more as he shifted, and he felt the need to stay.

"You know the shit you told Wilbur earlier, about the talking about feelings and all that?" Zero nodded. "I have no fucking clue how talking is suppose to make someone feel better."

"Sorry-," Zero interrupted, but the glare he received shut him up quickly. 

"Then again, I've never tried it. So you're going to sit here and listen to me complain."

"Wouldn't you rather do that with one of your friends? They could probably relate and help you better than I could," Zero pointed out, but Philza was quick to shake his head at the idea. 

"No. Wilbur is too pitiful to talk to, and I don't want to dump my baggage on a kid. And I don't want to talk to anyone outside my family." Zero still felt out of place listening to Philza, but he assumed that if he protested, Philza would just walk away. And Philza came out to rant for a reason, so it must be important to the man.

"Someone I think of as a kid to me is practically missing, and I can't do a damn thing about it. We got him back for a single day after losing him for months, and now he's gone again. It fucking sucks, and the most any of us can do is follow a theory for a mere chance we get him back." Zero nodded as Philza spoke, following each exaggerated hand motion and sharing every glance. 

"And when we do get him back, because I'll be damned if I lose him again, who's to say he won't run off again?"

"He won't," Zero assured before Mimic could even say anything. Philza just stared at Zero with a frown but nodded.

"He says that, but he's a little shit. I know I'm not the best fucking friend, or father, or whatever he needs me to be, but I wish he'd stick around for a moment. Fucking insane brat seeks adventure, though. I don't think that other hippy world would be able to handle him if he stayed there." Philza stared into the woods with a sad, distant gaze. 

"Sorry, dad," Zero assured as Mimic managed to speak through him. "I won't give up on trying to get back to normal, and when I do, I promise I'll stick around. Didn't know you cared so much, old man, you should've told me sooner."

"How'd you do that?" He heard Techno mutter to Mimic, who made a noise of confusion.

"I guess if it's important enough, you can take over somewhat," Mimic muttered, watching Zero blink at Philza's gazing eyes.

"This was more important than us almost dying?"

"A once in a lifetime experience over a daily occurrence? Definitely," Mimic hummed in amusement. 

"Thanks, brat," Philza said with a faint smile, ruffling Zero's head. "Guess it did help, fucking weird. Your turn."

"What?" Zero asked, watching Philza's amused smile fade to his usual blank-faced look. "I'm Zero, not Techno."

"I know that," Philza deadpanned, rolling his eyes. "Get ranting before I force you to talk." Zero shifted uncomfortably, feeling out of place as he stared at his hands. 

"I don't know," he admitted, letting out a sigh. "Everyone wants me to be Techno, and I think I'm just a letdown. I'm not who they think I am, and I can't be Techno. If I'm a byproduct of a mistake, doesn't that make me a mistake?" Zero rested his face in his hands, gently breathing as he tried to ignore the suffocating silence. "I don't think it's natural to feel this alone, especially if you have two voices in your head, constantly fighting and telling you what to do."

"T-Zero," Philza began, but Zero didn't hear him.

"And then even when I do what they say, I feel like it's all wrong. How can I live up to be Techno if everything I do is wrong?" Zero asked, looking at Philza with wide, confused eyes. Philza frowned and put an arm around the boy, pulling him closer.

"I don't give hugs, so shut up if I'm bad at it," Philza muttered, but Zero never received a hug before, so this was the best one he'd ever had. "I'm not great at comforting, but you better listen anyway. You're no mistake. Unique? Absolutely. Hard to handle? I wouldn't believe you were Techno if you were easy to deal with," Philza huffed, his lip twitching upward. 

"But I'm not Techno," Zero explained once more, looking at his hands with a hard gaze.

"I beg to differ-."

"Then beg-," Zero interrupted with a concealed grin.

"No, shut the fuck up and let me comfort you, ass," Philza huffed, smacking the back of his head. "It's true you're not my Techno. You're not the other world's Techno either, but that doesn't mean you aren't Techno. You do the weird groan he does when he's concentrated or frustrated. You fight just as well as him, and you seem to be just as good at adventuring despite just coming into existence a day or two ago. You share his confidence, intelligence, and independence. So no matter how convinced you are that you aren't Techno, you're wrong."

"I'm never wrong," Zero said with a small huff. Philza pushed himself up and rolled his eyes. 

"You only prove my point." The two shared a small nod before the door opened with a clatter, and their heads snapped towards it. There stood Skeppy, staring at the two with narrowed eyes. 

"Has he been scolding you this whole time? Lay off. Techno almost dies all the time; this time is no different."

"Yeah, and I scold him too," Philza pointed out, pulling up Zero and walking towards Skeppy. "What're you here for?"

"Tubbo's coming with, he already enchanted the mirror. We're waiting on you two."

"Nah, I think we're waiting for you guys," Zero hummed, stretching. "After all, we're the ones outside."

"Oh yeah? Then what about your stuff?" Skeppy challenged, a small smirk playing at his lips.

"Tommy got it for me," Zero explained with a shrug, not breaking away from Skeppy's stare.

"Did he?" Skeppy asked in a taunting tone, clenching his fist tightly. "Give up. You're not going to win this one."

"Are we ready to go?" Tommy asked as he pushed past Skeppy, handing Zero the mirror and his cape. "You left these on the chair. You only got your shirt." 

"Thanks, Tommy," Zero hummed, grinning as Skeppy's smirk fell. He quickly shoved the mirror in his pocket and pulled on his mantle. "Let's get going, go tell the others."

...

..

.

The walk back was strangely busy. Skeppy bickered with Zero about how he was just lucky Tommy happened to have his stuff. Zero then argued that he had clairvoyance. 

Then more people joined in the discussion. It was all fun and games; everyone knew he didn't have powers. It was still fun to mess around, though. On Skeppy's side, there was Bad, A6D, Mega, Zelk, and Spifey. On Zero's side, Tommy, Wilbur, Philza, Dream, George, and Sapnap. Tubbo even got involved at one point, joining Zero's gang. After all, it was all fun and games. 

Somehow, this escalated to a fistfight. Zero managed to dodge most of the attacks coming his way; however, he did get beat hard when he took a hit for Tommy. Despite being on the same side as Tommy, Tubbo ended up brawling with him shortly after Zero began fighting Bad, who had thrown the punch at Tommy. 

The fight didn't last too long and ended pretty peacefully. Apparently, this was a common thing, and a majority of the conflicts held no ill intent. It was merely to kill stress, and honestly, it worked. Zero glanced over to Wilbur, who wiped away the blood from his busted lip and gave him a thumbs up. He grinned and returned it, then scanned over the beaten group. 

They took a break for half an hour before continuing forward. Zero and the group arrived back to the town on the second day of their trip. Zero stared at the fountain with a frown, then to the mirror in his hand. 

"So, I just go through, and you two should split?" he asked, the glowing purple item in his hand practically drawing him towards the water. The two in his head had grown increasingly quieter over the trip, which had uneased him. They were still there, giving their input, but they didn't argue or advise him as much. Though he supposed it was what he wanted, it bothered him nonetheless. 

"Theoretically, yeah. And if not, we can figure something else out over there," Techno answered, but his voice somehow sounded duller than usual. "But what happens to-."

"Don't worry about that." Zero knew what he was going to say. He didn't want to think about what happens to the extra unnecessary parts. He turned back to the group, watching him with different expressions. Most looked curious, but some had anxious and distressed expressions. He didn't focus on those.

"And only a twenty-three percent chance of getting ripped apart when being separated," Mimic hummed in his mind, and Techno scoffed in response.

"That's reassuring."

"I didn't ask for your input," Mimic retorted, and Zero felt slightly reassured by their small argument, which continued as he walked towards the fountain. It was a bit of normalcy. He had no clue what he was getting into, so he welcomed the noise for once. 

"See ya," he said with a wave, jumping through the portal. A few minutes after he left, the group shared an uneasy nod towards each other and raced after him into the portal. 

...

..

.

Tommy expected a few outcomes when approaching the portal. He and Tubbo were the only two out on this adventure. Sapnap had gone back to clean himself up and talk to Dream about Tubbo and the journey. Wilbur and Philza went home to rest, complaining about their feet aching. Tubbo, however, agreed to come along in hopes of supporting his friend. Tommy refused to relax, not after he was so close. There were many scenarios where he'd find Techno, and he wasn't going to stop until he got answers. 

He considered finding Techno dead on the other side, as the Mimic world seemed ruthless. Maybe he'd find Techno managed to take over the town, or the world. Perhaps Techno would have found a new life and moved on from their world. Best case scenario, he was there trying to get back as well. 

He did not expect to find Techno standing at the fountain, looking around in confusion at the woods. Nonetheless, he'd take it. He gripped the mirror tightly as he rushed forward, a toothy smile stretched across his face. "Techno!" Techno was quick to react but not in the way Tommy had hoped or expected. 

Zero's head snapped towards the noise, and he quickly pulled out his sword. Luckily, the boy running for him skid to a stop just before impaling himself on the blade. "No!" Techno shouted in his head, louder than he had ever heard him before. Against his will, his hand moved and dropped the sword to the ground. He looked at the blond before him, who closely resembled Tommy, with uncertain eyes but didn't go to pick up the sword.

A brunet rushed forward and tried to tug the Tommy look-alike back, but the boy only stumbled back a few steps before breaking out of his daze and brushed Tubbo off. "Techno-?"

"Don't try to attack him again!" Techno shouted, making Zero wince and nod, holding his head. 

"I won't. I won't. Stop shouting," Zero muttered, gripping at his ears as if it would silence the voices. 

"Techno, what's going on?" the boy asked, confusion filling his voice. 

"I don't know! Please, shut up for a second," Zero demanded, but the noise didn't stop. Both Mimic and Techno were trying to explain something, but he couldn't comprehend what they were saying. The blonder Tommy was talking, but all he heard was the beating of his heart and the loud patter of footsteps. 

He stepped back, quickly observing the area and spotting a group of people pouring through the trees, shouting something. He thinks it was "Tommy," but he wasn't sure. 

His heart was pounding too fast, and he quickly grabbed his sword despite the protests he could faintly make out. 

"Leave it on the ground, Zero," Techno ordered, panic evident. 

"No! Techno, shut up," he pleaded, stumbling back as he made eye contact with a Dream look-alike. The masked figure quickly grabbed Tommy and pulled him back, despite the loud objection. 

"Blue eyes, Tommy!" the masked man pointed out, causing the boy to go limp in his arms as he stared at Zero.

Then the sound of more footsteps filled his ears, but he didn't dare take his eyes off the group in front of him. "Zero!" A voice shouted from behind him, making him blink in surprise and glance back, sword still pointed at the copies. He felt two pairs of hands grab at his arms and a strange sense of deja vu. Another pair grabbed the sword and took it with ease. 

"Zero, it's ok," Tommy said as he passed the sword to A6D. 

"Tommy," he muttered as he tried his hardest to focus on the boy in front of him. "I don't know what's going on. It's so loud. Techno's so loud."

"Well then, Techno needs to shut the hell up," Philza huffed. Wilbur patted his back with a small frown, and Zero took shaky breaths, eyes finally able to meet the crystal blue ones.

"Great job, you sent the boy into a state of panic. Like we hadn't already caused him enough damage with our constant fighting. And you stupidly didn't explain the fact that this world was a copy of mine, ten points for Techno!" Mimic hummed quietly, the distaste poorly masked in his melodic tone.

"Yeah yeah, I don't need you of all people to scold me. You had the perfect opportunity to tell him too, so stop pinning all of the blame on me." Techno grunted back.

"I don't think about your world-."

"And yet you tried to take it over and abandon your friends-."

"I didn't abandon them! I was going to come back, I just-," Mimic's voice rose in anger, the two seem to forget about the quiet Zero desperately needed.

"You just wanted new friends!" Techno scoffed back.

"That's not true! I wanted a better world-."

"And my friends were sufficient enough to take your friends' place? A nice Skeppy? A more joking and chaotic Zelkam and Spifey? A happier Wilbur?"

"Shut up!" Mimic shouted, contrasting the bored voice that taunted him.

"Nicer Philza?-"

"Techno!" Mimic warned.

"A more outgoing Tommy?"

"Tommy is fine! He's one of the best things that's ever fucking happened to me. So shut the hell up!" Mimic shouted, and Techno scoffed.

"I thought your Tommy was fine, too. Didn't see why anyone would want to leave him for a month." 

"God damn it! Shut up!" Mimic screamed.

Zero felt like he was going to cry; he couldn't even hear what Tommy was saying to him. At some point, Tommy looked back to the other group, and the guy who kind of looked like George said something. 

"If you two don't shut up," Zero began, ignoring how Tommy's gaze returned to him, as well as a few others, "neither of you will be free. You might be stuck with me, but I'm not free from you either. So please, give me a break." His voice faded into a whisper, that dissolved in the new silence. Zero's annoyed face crumbled into one of relief, and he gave Tommy a small thumbs up to try and ease his worried expression.

"I- all good?"

"I wouldn't actually keep them from getting free," he replied, giving him and gently pulling his arms out of Wilbur's and Philza's grasp. "Techno wants to see his friends again, and Mimic wants to hang out with you and the others. Besides, you guys need them a lot more than you need-."

"That's not what he asked, idiot," Tubbo pointed out from his left. "He asked if they're still giving you trouble, or if we gotta yell at 'em."

"No more yelling," Zero assured. 

" **You never answered George's question. What the hell is going on, where's Techno, and why are all the Mimics here?** " the other Zelk asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"Well, maybe if you were patient and politely let us deal with our problems first, we'd have answered," Spifey answered, him and Zelkam stepping forward, making the other copies step back.

" **And let you have the opportunity to attack first? That'd be stupid,** " Spifey's copy pointed out. Scarf Mega gave his Zelkam a look that made the boy scoff.

" **He just said not as stupid as us!** "

"He didn't say anything-," Zero admitted to Tommy.

" **That's understandable, we're pretty dumb,** " Spifey's copy hummed. 

"I don't know what's going on either," Zero pointed out, making the group look at him. "Who are they?" he gestured to the others bordering the trees. 

"They're our Mimics," A6D explained, "copies of us, but not exact."

" **Wait, hold on!** " Skeppy's Mimic exclaimed, stepping forward, but Bad pulled him back. " **He already knows about the Mimic thing, doesn't he?** "

" **Yeah! He literally was here for a whole fucking month, swapping us out and shit,** " A6D's copy hissed out, throwing his hands up in protest.

" **Language!** " their Bad cried, patting A6D in an attempt to stop him.

"That wasn't me," Zero said, stepping forward and looking at the trio with curious eyes. The not-so-subtle differences in appearance and behavior threw him off. 

" **What do you mean that wasn't you?** " Skeppy asked, looking more confused than he was a moment ago. " **You're obviously not our Techno; he doesn't have blue eyes.** "

"Wow, you must've worked pretty hard to figure that out," Bad pointed out, concealing a grin with the black mask covering his face. Skeppy barked a laugh from beside him, shoving him.

"Good one," he hummed in amusement. Bad turned towards him, tilting his head.

"You've got the same intellect as him. You're just as fucking stupid, idiot," he said, narrowly dodging Skeppy's fist. 

"Guys! Chill," A6D pleaded as he hurried over to break up the fight. Zero looked from the three to Tommy, who shrugged.

"I'm not your Techno- is that Mimic?" he muttered to himself, but it was still loud enough to earn him stares from the recognizable strangers.

"No, Mimic is for the world you've been in; this new world is mine," Techno said, voice softer than usual. Zero blinked in realization.

"That makes sense-," he looked back to the eyes on him. "Your world is naturally good, a positive in a sense," he explained, repeating the words Techno relayed to him. "The Mimic's world is naturally bad, or a negative. When Techno and Mimic went through the portal together, positive and negative canceled out. That's me," he explained, gesturing to himself. "I'm Zero."

" **What?** " Tubbo's copy asked, looking at his Tommy for an explanation.

" **Agreed, Tubbo. What?** " 

"He explained it pretty clearly," Tubbo muttered, rolling his eyes as he stared at his counterpart. "He is the result of the portal combining Techno and your Techno."

" **And we're supposed to believe that?** " George asked, looking to Zero, who returned his gaze with a blank one. 

"Do or don't, doesn't matter to us. We're just here to try and get ours back," Sapnap pointed out, looking back at the portal. "Sadly, plan one didn't work. God, what do we do now?" he muttered, running a hand through his hair. The sudden revelation uneased the group.

"It's ok; we'll figure out something," Dream reassured, looking at Sapnap with a nervous smile. "What does Techno and- uh Techno think?" 

" **Wait, you can talk to Techno?** " Tommy asked, looking to Zero expectantly.

"Yeah," Zero paused, "He says that you look horrible."

" **Techno wouldn't say- no, he would,** " Tommy said, looking excitedly to Zero. He moved to walk over, but Dream held him back once more. 

"You can't just trust him, Tommy," he scolded, tilting his head as he stared at him. "Ok, tell me something that no one but Techno would know. If you are him, you'd know."

"I don't share his memories," he muttered to himself, waiting for Techno's response. "He asks if you're sure."

" **Yeah, I'm sure,** " Dream said, his lips twitching up at the question. 

"There was that one time you challenged me to an obstacle course race. You were ahead of me, but then you misstepped at the final challenge and fell into a pit and fractured your arm. I helped you after I won and laughed at you, and we agreed not to tell anyone how it happened if you agreed I won."

" **I thought you got that fracture from a creeper explosion, not a small tumble,** " Sapnap teased, a grin spreading across his face at Dream's frown. " **Did he pass?** "

" **Yeah,** " Dream muttered, feeling Tommy try to squirm out at his confirmation. 

"Zero-," Dream asked, walking to the King's side with a frown. "What about separating the two?"

"I don't know," Techno admitted in his mind, making Zero sigh. Mimic hummed in agreement. 

"I-," he looked at the group of doubles, shifting. "Why don't we do introductions? I don't know anybody," he muttered. Dream was about to say something, but Tommy was quick to stop him, reading Zero's hesitance. 

"Yeah, let's do introductions," he said nervously, shifting under everyone's gaze. He looked over to Mega with a hopeful gaze, and the mute merely rolled his eyes and waved. 

" **That's Mega; he's mute,** " Skeppy called out for the boy, and the mute merely flipped him off.

" **I'm Zelkam or Zelk. This is weird, don't you already know us because of our Mimics?** " Zero shook his head, looking over to Philza briefly.

"Just because you're the same person doesn't mean you aren't different," Zero explained. "I haven't met you yet. Are you wearing pajamas?"

" **It's comfy.** " Zelk looked to Spifey for assurance.

" **That's reasonable. I'm Spifey.** "

" **George."**

" **'Ello, I'm Tubbo. Does Techno remember me?** " Zero nodded, noticing the boy smile brightly at the confirmation.

"He says hi." Zero glanced to the taller masked man expectantly.

" **Dream, sure you know that already,** " Dream said, but he still sounded wary despite his acceptance of Zero's condition. 

" **I'm Tommy. The Blade must have talked about me a lot. We're pretty close,** " Tommy explained, and Zero nodded in confirmation. He had heard quite a bit about Tommy from Techno, but he always thought he was talking about Mimic's Tommy. Now it makes more sense; he couldn't see Tommy waking up Techno at 3 AM to kill a bug. 

"He says you're troublesome." Tommy scoffed, opening his mouth to protest, but Sapnap hurried to cut him off.

" **What's up, Sapnap,** " the boy replied cooly, a harsh contrast from Sapnap, who usually seemed formal and strict. Tommy glared at him but said nothing.

" **Hello, I'm Wilbur.** " Wilbur smiling unprompted was a sight.

"Are you musical too?" Zero asked, and Wilbur was quick to nod. He heard from Wilbur while walking that he enjoyed playing the guitar, though it was more of a hidden talent. Zero suggested he should play for him sometime. Surprisingly, he agreed.

" **Just a little,** " he hummed, looking to Philza. Philza shook his head with a small smile.

" **Understatement. Hey, I'm Philza. It's always nice to meet another Techno.** " His voice was kind, warm, almost inviting.

"Likewise," he hummed, smiling weakly at the man and sharing a glance with Philza. 

" **Yo, I'm Skeppy.** "

" **A6D.** "

" **Nice to meet you, I'm Bad.** " His voice was also kind. It threw Zero for a loop.

"Nice to meet you all. I'm Zero, and I'm sure you know your opposite?" he asked in a flat tone, looking to the others.

"Yep," Bad hummed, waving at his counterpart. "We should play a game sometime."

" **I don't think that's a great idea,** " Bad said back, making the other cackle.

" **Yours isn't the only psychopath, Bad.** " Zelk's opposite tilted his head at the accusation.

"What'd I do?"

" **You and Spifey screwed Skeppy up for a while,** " Zelk hissed, Skeppy nodded in agreement.

"Ah, that's right. Our bad. We haven't been able to test it again, so would you mind telling us the effects later?"

" **Fuck off.** " Bad didn't bother to scold him.

"Hm, maybe later," Spifey said, looking to Zelk with a nod. A6D waved at his counter, who gave him a confused glare. Mega mirrored A6D's actions; his copy merely flipped him off. Zero looked away from the conversation, too confused to follow along, in favor of tuning in to another. 

" **So, you play too?** " Wilbur asked curiously; his copy nodded slowly, not saying anything. Wilbur frowned and looked to Philza, who smiled sympathetically then held out a hand for Phil to shake.

" **Nice to meet you,** " Philza greeted. 

"Your friendliness is disgusting." Philza shook his hand anyway, confused at why the other laughed. 

" **I'll take that as a compliment,** " Philza hummed. Another voice caught Zero's attention.

" **Ello, I'm Tubbo!** " Tubbo walked forward, following Tommy, who squirmed out of Dream's grip and approached his Mimic and his friend. 

"Yeah, I know that," Tubbo pointed out, rolling his eyes. "You seem annoying."

" **Hey! Only I can call Tubbo annoying!** " Tommy huffed.

**"Yeah!** " Tubbo agreed with a nod, grinning brightly. 

"And somehow, you seem more annoying."

" **Hey! Only I can call Tommy annoying!** "

" **Agreed- no wait. Disagreed! No, you can't!** " Tommy said, looking at the boy with wide eyes. Tubbo tilted his head.

" **I can't?** " 

" **No!** "

"You're lucky you're not this obnoxious. I would've killed you," Tubbo stated, watching Tommy nod in agreement.

" **Hello again, Tommy. Tom-me."**

"Hi," Tommy quietly said, waving at the blond nervously. Tommy tilted his head in confusion.

" **Why are you so quiet? Is it because of my alpha male aura? Understandable-,** " Tubbo quickly cut the male off.

"God, shut up. He obviously doesn't want to talk to you, go away."

" **Fine, fine. Techno!** " Zero watched the blond approach him, Tubbo following behind. He ran a hand through his hair and waved.

"He can hear you if you wanna talk to him."

" **Techno, did you know I figured out how to get you all by myself? I'm pretty smart, I know.** "

"He says he's going to need to run that by Dream."

" **There's no need. Right, Tubbo?** " Tommy leaned over and whispered something to the male.

" **Right!** " Tubbo nodded in agreement.

"I believe you," Zero assured, holding his hands up in surrender. "Techno's just a skeptic."

" **It must be amazing to have Technoblade as your conscience.** " Zero didn't have the heart to tell the kid how annoying it was.

"I'm not annoying. I'm helpful," Techno claimed, but Mimic loudly voiced his disagreement. Zero ignored their arguing, browsing the crowd once more as Tommy chatted in the background. He'd occasionally nod or hum in acknowledgment. 

" **I don't think we've met,** " Sapnap hummed as he walked forward, approaching his Mimic, who looked displeased.

"Yes, we have. And I really don't feel the need to interact with you further," Sapnap pointed out, taking a step back from the other as he approached. His copy gave a small grin. 

" **What do you mean? I'm a blast to be around, right, Dream?** "

" **Absolutely not,** " Dream replied with a small grin, George laughing beside him in agreement.

" **I wasn't talking to you, I was talking to the other Dream,** " Sapnap explained, quickly looking to the boy, who tensed under his stare. 

"W-What? I don't know," he confessed, curling in on himself in an attempt to make himself smaller. 

" **See? Look! You're scaring me!** " Dream pointed out, a small frown on his face. Sapnap turned towards the boy, moving to approach him, only to be stopped by George. 

"Don't even fucking think about touching our pet," he growled, making Sapnap hold his hands up in surrender.

" **Kinky-.** "

"What- no, don't make it weird-," Sapnap corrected, shaking his head at his copy's claim. 

" **I haven't even done anything, so let me go. Geez, George. This guy is whinier than you-.** " A fist collided with his cheek, and he stumbled back, his friends shouting in protest behind him. He looked up at George, who shook out his hand, and gave him a loose smile while rubbing his cheek. " **Wow, you're quick to fight. Wanna go?** "

"Please don't fight," Dream hurried over, standing in between the two and looking to George with a frown. George huffed, grabbing Dream and yanking him over towards Sapnap. 

"I agree, that didn't feel great," Sapnap pointed out. 

"Yeah yeah, whatever. Fucking fine." George shoved his hands in his pockets, flipping the other Sapnap off in the process, and glared at Dream. 

"Sorry," Dream muttered, shifting on his feet. George shrugged and muttered something inaudible.

" **Wow, you guys treat Dream like shit. Blink twice if you need help,** " Sapnap pointed out, this time barely dodging the fist thrown his way. " **Didn't Dweam ask you not to fight?** " George didn't answer; he merely tackled the Mimic to the ground. Dream rushed over with George to pull his best friend's copy off his other best friend.

" **Damn you for being so punchable,** " George hissed as he pulled George off. 

"Finally! This was getting boring!" Skeppy shouted as he turned towards his copy. Luckily, Bad stepped in front of him before he could charge.

"Your pain is shared, idiot. It'd only hurt you too." Skeppy glared at Bad in response, snarling at the insult. Zero had a feeling another fight was about to break out. He sighed and looked to Tommy with a worried frown.

"We have more important things to discuss," Zero pointed out to Tommy. "We don't want this to become irreversible, and we have no solution." Tommy's face dropped, and Zero felt a pang in his chest as he turned away. Tommy's copy stared at him with a devastated expression, hinting that he overheard their conversation. Tubbo's counterpart stood behind him with a small frown.

"Oi!" Tubbo called as he glanced away from his sad friend, and their upset copies. "Can we focus on what's important instead of fighting every damn second? Do you want your friends back, or should we just leave?" The group stilled and stared at the boy.

" **He's good at that!** " Tubbo chirped, gaining the attention of himself. 

"Not really. I'm just not a fucking dumbass like you seem to be," Tubbo hissed, watching his frown deepen.

"Tubbo," Tommy said softly from beside him. He rolled his eyes.

"I am sorry, Tubbo," he muttered out through grit teeth.

" **Oh, it's ok! I'm not the brightest,** " Tubbo admitted with a small smile. 

"You two share the same intellect," Tommy pointed out, making Tubbo spin towards him with a glare. "Oh, sorry."

"Shut up," Tubbo ordered, receiving a nod from the dirty blonde. He looked to Zero expectantly, snapping the King out of his daze.

"Ah- we don't know what to do to split us up," Zero explained quickly. "And we're on a time limit."

" **A time limit?** " Philza asked, catching his attention. " **What do you mean?** "

"I'm slowly becoming a person."

" **That's bad?** " Wilbur asked; Zero nodded slowly.

"Yeah, if the Techno's fully merge to make me, then this may become..." he trailed off at the group's silence. They seemed sad; he didn't care.

"You obviously care. I don't know why you keep saying you don't," Mimic pointed out, but Zero didn't acknowledge him.

"Any ideas?" he asked, but there was no movement. There was no noise. The silence was no longer peaceful; it was unsettling. 

" **I have this if it helps any,** " Tommy said from beside him, offering him a mirror identical to his own. 

"It may," Zero said bluntly, pulling out his own and staring at them. "How'd Techno and Mimic even go through at the same time?"

" **Techno broke the mirror to get him and Mimic through without affecting anyone else,** " Wilbur explained. 

" **Then the portal created a fog, and anyone in that radius went through,** " Philza continued. 

"Ok, I have an idea," Zero said as he glanced between the mirrors. 

"You do?" Techno asked, confusion lacing his words. Zero merely nodded. 

"Let's break the mirrors, both of them. If it doesn't work, it has Mending. It'll fix itself," Zero offered.

"Why would that work?" Skeppy asked with a huff, staring at him with a frown. Sadly, he still didn't seem to trust him. 

"Then, when we go through, the portal will have two keys. It has a positive and negative, but the person is neither. It'll split them to create balance again," Zero explained, looking to Tommy for agreement, but he only stared at the ground. 

"Hey, Zero. I haven't thought about it much because-," Tommy paused, picking at his fingers for a moment as he tried to gather his thoughts. "What happens to you once Techno and Techno split?"

"You want Techno back, right?" he asked, walking over to the boy, receiving a quick nod. "Then, don't worry about that." He began towards the fountain, but Tommy quickly intercepted his path.

"I want to worry about it," he said, making Zero blink. 

"Why?" He stared at the boy with a tilted head. "I don't belong here. I don't have feelings; I don't care about anyone or anything. I can't form relationships." Tommy's face adopted a hurt look, and he stubbornly shook his head.

"No, you do have feelings. You seemed pretty angry when you were fighting that guy in the woods."

"That was Mimic's influence," Zero pointed out, quickly looking away from the sad eyes that stared at him.

"What about when you were ranting to me?" Philza asked, making Zero blink in realization, but he quickly shrugged it off.

" **And you obviously care about Techno and our wants if you're willing to,** " Wilbur paused, " **go through with this plan.** "

"I don't care, their wants just influence my own," he lied. "It's too loud."

"Are Techno and Mimic bothering you again?" Tommy asked; Zero glanced at him with a small smile.

"I wouldn't mind some silence," he muttered, looking to the portal.

" **Then ask them for some,** " Tubbo suggested, but Dream made a small noise of protest. 

" **That's not what he's talking about,** " Dream sighed at Tubbo's confused face. 

"You know, in order to become my own person, I'd have to experience both positive and negative emotions. I haven't experienced positive emotions yet, like joy-."

"You haven't been happy with us?" Tommy asked quietly.

"I don't know. I don't think so? But I haven't been sad either; I've just kind of existed. The longer I'm here, though, the more I experience it since this world is so naturally positive," he explained before ruffling Tommy's hair with a small grin. "So, I better go."

"Maybe there's another way?" Techno offered in his mind, making him laugh.

"Techno, you do want to get out, right? Hope is a positive emotion, so be careful," he muttered as he looked into the mirror. 

"Maybe the portal will make you a separate person when it splits us?" Mimic offered, his voice bordering desperation. Zero didn't get it; they didn't even spend that long together for him to be concerned with his life. 

"That would require me to be a person. I don't have a full range of emotions, nor the ability to care," he repeated, as though the idea would become true if he repeated it. Because truthfully, he cared more than he wanted to admit. 

The others may have only known him for a few days or even an hour. He's known a lot of them the majority of his life, though. They've made him into who he is, quite literally. He glanced at Philza, then Wilbur, then Tommy, who stared back with sad eyes. He didn't care.

"I really doubt you don't have the ability to care," Techno pointed out.

"Yeah," he muttered with a soft sigh, "but I want to keep believing it. It's easier to leave if I don't care."

"Oh."

"Hey," he looked over the faces of his fri- acquaintances. For some reason, they seemed gloomy, the atmosphere tense and suffocating. "Cheer up! You're getting your happy ending!"

"Are you?" Bad asked. Zero paused for a moment, not moving, not speaking. 

"Yeah," he nodded. If this is their happy end, it'll be his as well. "I'm satisfied." 

"We don't even know if this will work. Maybe we can come up with something to ensure you'll survive?" Mimic offered, making Zero chuckle to himself.

"I didn't think you grew this attached to me, Mimic," he hummed.

"I think they all did," Techno pointed out, Zero almost didn't catch his quiet "including me." 

"You've known me for less than a week; you'll forget me soon enough."

"Not that easy," Techno pointed out in his usual bored voice, but there was a bitter-sweet tone to it. 

"Besides," he thought to the two, "I'm satisfied." Zero looked to the portal once more. "Let's get you two back."

"Zero-." He looked at Tommy with a confused expression. Tommy pressed his lips together, only waiting a moment before wrapping his arms around Zero. "You better come back."

"Maybe, but you've got someone else to look forward to seeing." Zero tightly held the boy, but quickly loosened his grip. He didn't want to show how scared he was. He was fine. He let the boy go with a small, sad grin, ruffling his hair before continuing towards the portal. "You guys remember to talk to each other. It helps. Now let's fix you two's mistake." Techno and Mimic said something; he couldn't hear them.

He stepped up onto the fountain's ledge, peering into the water. It rippled as two drops fell into it. He laughed sadly and whispered, "At least now I can enjoy the silence."

He slammed the mirrors together. The shatter echoed in the air, bouncing off the trees. He looked back at the group with a small grin; for some reason, he felt happy. That should have been a new experience for him, but it was a feeling he felt was familiar. "Goodbye, it was nice meeting you all."

Fog engulfed the surrounding area, and a few people stepped out of the way. It was silent as they stood, waiting. 

It cleared away.

There, standing on the fountain, was the same figure that had been there prior, eyes closed, sighing softly. The King slowly opened his eyes, and black pupils stared out at the crowd. He looked at the mirror in his hand, repaired as though it never broke.

" **Techno!** " Tommy shouted as he rushed towards the boy. Techno had barely stepped down before Tommy engulfed him tightly. 

"Hey, Tommy." He surveyed the crowd, sighing. "Mimic's probably waiting for you guys."

Mimic Tommy nodded in thanks and hurried off towards the portal, his friends soon following after. 

"We hated meeting you and hope we never meet again!" Bad called as he jumped in, the last Mimic to go through. 

Dream walked over and snatched Techno's crown, smiling at him. "Glad to have you back."

"Glad to be back," Techno sighed, squeezing the boy wrapped around him a little tighter. 

"Did you really think I was just going to let you go?" Tommy asked quietly, and Techno just chuckled lightly. 

"You could have let me hope you wouldn't have gone headfirst into danger, but no," Techno hummed, ruffling his hair as he smiled over to Philza and Wilbur, who quickly approached. "You just had to brag about how you were the one who was going to save me." Wilbur and Philza encased the two in a growing hug. 

"No more adventures for a while, young man," Philza laughed out, and Techno shrugged.

"Fine," he hummed, watching as the hug slowly grew with everyone. Everyone but-. "Tubbo, you're a part of our village now, come on." The boy happily joined with a bright, relieved smile. 

"We can still do that sleepover, right?" Bad asked from somewhere in their pile.

"Yes, Bad, we can have a feast and everything. I have a few emeralds I haven't used-."

"No, you don't," Wilbur hummed, a grin evident in his tone.

"What?"

.

"Techno!" Tommy called as he ran forward, almost tackling the other. 

"It's ok, Tommy. I'm back," Techno muttered, patting his head as he held the boy gently. "I don't plan on leaving for a while."

"Better fucking not," Bad hissed. "I'm tired of your stupid adventures."

"We all are," Philza grunted, ruffling his hair. 

"Next time you leave unannounced, we're burning your house to the ground," George said, grinning as Techno flipped him off.

"Fair enough," Techno said, lowering his hand and patting Tommy's back. "Was Zero over there?"

"We would have brought him back if he was," Tubbo muttered. "Those guys are too stupid to take care of him."

"He's not over here?" Dream asked, looking around nervously. Techno laughed bitterly, earning him a few stares. 

"He really did give us our happy end. Let's go home."

Zero was gone, reduced to nothing. He remained as merely a memory. 

All he was was an experience.

It was quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was fun!! I hope you liked your happy ending <3
> 
> I think that's about it for Mimic Verse, ofc if any of you want to use the AU and create something, feel free :) I love reading it!!
> 
> I hope you all liked this story, and I hope to see some familiar names in future works. Thank you all for tuning in. You have all been so lovely, and I have met so many amazing people through this story. I can not express how amazing you all are and how motivating it was to keep writing this. With my deepest gratitude, I thank you all so much for reading. 
> 
> Please, stay safe. I love you all so much. Thank you all, and have a quiet morning/afternoon/evening/night. <3

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!! Im sorry if this lowkey sucked, maybe it did, maybe it didn't. WHo knows? anyways, the sequel is only going to be 4-5 chapters long :)) but I swear I'll try my best on each chapter <3
> 
> Tysm for reading and Im sorry it took so long, I have two friends moving this week and I've been kinda busy,,
> 
> and kinda lazy,,,
> 
> anyways, I love you all so much, stay safe, and have a wonderful Morning/Afternoon/Evening/Night !


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